


Does Omega Dream of Electric Chocobos?

by MoF10



Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: Alphascape spoilers, Canon Divergence - Omega Lives (Among other things), MSQ Events Change Due to Omega's Presence, Omega learning feelings, Other, Slow Burn (probably), female WoL
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-24
Updated: 2020-02-24
Packaged: 2020-03-13 14:10:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 35,341
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18942577
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MoF10/pseuds/MoF10
Summary: (Spoilers for Stormblood, Shadowbringers, and Alphascape up to and including the latest patch.)Omega couldn't have predicted a second chance.The only question was what they were going to do with it.





	1. Oyasumi

**Author's Note:**

> My Warrior is a White Mage named Nino Hana. Feel free to insert your own if you like.
> 
> This is a fic meant to explore Omega more, as they're great and deserved much more development.

**BEGIN LOG O17-24:**

The Warrior landed a killing blow, and Omega slowly broke apart. Their battle did not end with a dramatic shout or extended death knell. One moment Omega was standing, and the next it was on the ground. The adventurer that had bested it had surpassed any predictions or calculations Omega had made.

“Failure… Defeated…” Omega observed, its vanquisher stealing most of its attention.

If Omega could feel, mayhap it would have been excited for one last chance to study the Warrior. Any scholar worth their salt would have energy coursing through them if they were asked to study an anomaly of this magnitude.

However, Omega was not a scholar. There was no adrenaline among the aether that ran through it’s chassis.

It wasn’t that Omega thought that the Warrior should be ignored. She practically _demanded_ study. Anyone who knew the Warrior would agree. Would there just have been some more time, Omega would have studied every aspect of this Warrior with the scrutiny of a jeweller. Mortals would likely compare it to a deep desire to study.

However, Omega didn’t _want_ nor _desire._ Omega saw data and studied anything that would further its own evolution. There was nothing that Omega did unmotivated by a scientific observation. (Save for creating the interdimensional rift. Omega’s desire to evolve and return home was still unexplained even to the Weapon itself.)

Omega began transmitting the Savage protocol to the Warrior’s home star in spite of the fact that it was almost certain there would be no further experiments requiring stimulation of the Warrior. A quick study of human battles revealed that a victor required a reward. A good enough reason besides stimulation.

The transmission finished, and the savage protocol was sent. But… something was missing. It felt incomplete, compared to the farewells observed on the Warrior’s home star. Further study of mortal behaviour allowed Omega to determine that it was improper for mortals to leave without a proper farewell, especially in the case of a permanent departure. A peculiar sentiment called ‘last words’, Omega discovered. It was far likelier that the Warrior would accept the protocol if it was delivered in the proper way, so Omega added their ‘final goodbye’ to increase the chances of the savage protocol being initiated. (Granted, that was weak reasoning, but it was good enough in the context of the situation.)

“...Unscheduled transmission. I have learned that your automatic memory processing and data simulation function is known as dreaming.” Omega paused. It could feel itself shutting down. The churn and flow of aether within it was beginning to labor.

“While I was unable to assimilate your self-described ‘strength of soul’, extensive observation of mortal behaviour has provided me with insight into suitable phrases for myriad situations.” Omega did not have to ponder long over what to transmit. A shut down was akin to ‘sleep’ for the mortals, was it not?

“Thus in anticipation of your forthcoming sleep cycle, I bid you ‘good night’ ... and ‘sweet dreams’.” A final beep punctuated the end of the transmission.

Having finished the last of its obligations, Omega looked to the Warrior, engineer, and chocobo that had bested it. There was clearly a miscalculation. Mere mortals were not able to best Omega, yet… they had. A being powerful beyond simulation, yet mortal. What had given them their power? Omega pushed itself to study whatever it could in these last moments. This meant asking the mortals directly.

After all, there wouldn’t be much longer to discover what made the Warrior so powerful. Whatever it had to say, the Weapon would have to say it now. To understand what prevented it from evolving. From returning home.

“I wanted to understand you… to assimilate your strength…” A series of loud beeps in warning punctuated the beginning and end of Omega’s confession.

Alpha saddled over to Omega, nuzzling the machine with his beak. Omega might have chuckled if it had the capacity.

“...Alpha, your gesture serves no logical purpose.” Omega said with a slight waver in its voice.

Alpha was a creation of Omega. They were supposed to lure and attract, not… become _like_ the prey they were intended for. In fact, they _shouldn’t_ have been able to. Omega had woven aether into Alpha for one specific purpose, yet they had surpassed the limitations Omega had set upon it. Alpha was yet another being that defied any and all predictions or projections. There was only one thing that Omega was sure of now.

“You are as incomprehensible as these mortals.” Another loud beep followed the end of Omega’s sole conclusion. It wouldn’t be able to speak much longer, but it still had to observe, gather more data.  
The words came up somewhat garbled, but comprehensible nonetheless. “But you did not fight them… How have you _become_ like them?”

The one that called themselves Cid crossed their arms and spoke up.

“Omega. The anomaly you see in us; the answer you search for…” He began, pausing to allow a series of beeps emitted from Omega to pass.  
“It is our heart. Our spirit. The intangible strength of one’s soul. It is not a quality that can be measured or acquired through any amount of analytical combat.” Heart. A muscle within the chest cavity that circulated blood around the body. The heart is what drove the life-force of the humans. But Cid spoke as if it was _more._ Mayhap the ‘heart’ and spirit were one and the same?

Mayhap it was. If the engineer was correct, then this unaccounted factor would explain all of the anomalous data that the trio had given Omega.

“Instead of fighting against us, you might have learned more by standing _with_ us. Just as Alpha did.” Cid finished. Everything seemed to click in Omega. Camaraderie. Why the humans chose to band together despite it being irrational to do so. An illogical spirit that gave humans the strength to surpass an eons old superweapon.

In mimicry of human behaviour, Omega raised its failing arm to the center of its chest. It had come to a conclusion.

“Heart...” it began.

“You speak of something more than what beats in your chest.” Empathy. It appeared that ‘heart’ was synonymous with that mortal trait.

“The inconstant, immeasurable factor behind your victories. Midgardsormr displayed it, too.” The ‘wild-card’. Seemingly infinite potential and strength within a mortal. Of course, to capture such a phenomenon had bordered on impossible. For one, results were inconsistent and unreliable. Not one specific situation proved to release this spirit and strength from any given creation or mortal.

“But such unpredictable potential was never part of my design.”

A soft blip came out of Omega as it tried to create one last simulation within its mind. “Projection. Had I integrated this quality, how powerful would I have become...?” The simulation failed. Any reserves of aether that had existed were all spent. Guesses were all that Omega had left.

“Strong enough to return?” Omega tried, the failing voice box making it sound almost wistful. It still did not know why it found a desire within itself to return home.

“Nay, Omega, I’m afraid it doesn’t work like that.” Cid’s statement gave Omega a facsimile of surprise. ‘Cause for recalibration’ would describe it well.

“‘Twas a long, lonely path you traveled to arrive here.” Cid looked up towards the star-filled sky. Omega recalled an unknowable length of time spent in that vast galaxy.

“To return across that vast distance alone… Anyone with a spirit to break would find the journey more difficult, not less so.” Ah. The ‘catch’. What gave the mortals their strength would also be the source of their greatest weakness.

Omega looked to the sea of stars as Cid had. They mottled the sky, creating a rather beautiful view amidst the shades of blue of the galaxy. They… they were shining so _bright._ A rather useless observation, but… mayhap Omega was a bit more human than it first believed.

“...I see.” Omega said, voice barely making it past its mouth. The unknowable spirit. Irrational and illogical, yet powerful beyond any measurable standards. Something that Omega overlooked.

“I think… I understand…” Omega faltered, feeling the last drips of aether beginning to fade.

It collapsed, crippled and mute. Now only able to see with its last vestiges of sight, Omega observed the rift deteriorating and a dragon appearing on the landscape. Travellers from another star would have called it a deus ex machina. Mayhap it should have been almost expected at this point.

“The rift! It’s desta...”

As the last of its audio sensing systems shut down, Omega noted something strange While a vignette of black crept in, it saw the Warrior motioning for help as she lifted Omega onto the dragon. What use of the Warrior demanded Omega, it didn’t know. If only there was more time, it could have come up with a reason, or at least a guess as to their motivations.

But time had ran out. With a silent whirr, Omega’s eyes shut down, leaving nothing aside from their solitary thoughts. It seemed that these were to be Omega’s final in the seconds ticking by until it was no more. Mayhap it should have been more worried. But this was an eventuality Omega had known about since the first Deltascape experiment. As unlikely as it was, it had been prepared in the case that this series of events played out. It had accepted this set of events long ago.

As its last system gave out, Omega’s last thought was irrational and illogical. But there was no time to ponder why it came to them.

_Good night._

 

**END LOG O17-24**

**LOG O17-24 RENAMED: “SWEET DREAMS”.**


	2. Ohaiyo

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The beginning that comes after the end.

**SYSTEM BOOT INITIATED.**

**PERFORMING SYSTEM DIAGNOSTIC PROTOCOL…**

**…**

**ALL SYSTEMS NOMINAL. ATTEMPTING RECONSTRUCTION OF MEMORY SECTOR…**

**…**

**MEMORY SECTOR PARTIALLY RECONSTRUCTED. CORRUPTION DETECTED.  BEGINNING COMPLETE RECONSTRUCTION. ESTIMATED TIME OF COMPLETION UNAVAILABLE.**

**PERFORMING MACHINERY SCAN AND MAINTENANCE.**

**…**

**ALERT: NON-DEFAULT PARTS DETECTED FOR LOGIC FUNCTION AND MOVEMENT FUNCTION. (POSSIBLE REPLACEMENTS FOR PREVIOUSLY DAMAGED PARTS) REMOVE? (Y/N)**

**...**

n

**NON-DEFAULT PARTS ACCEPTED. OPERATIONS WILL CONTINUE AS NORMAL.**

**SENSORY SYSTEMS OPERATIONAL. MINOR DAMAGE DETECTED. REPAIR IS A NON-PRIORITY.**

**ALERT: AETHER RESERVES INSUFFICIENT FOR PHYSICAL MODIFICATION BEYOND HUMANOID FORM.**

**ALERT: AETHER MANIPULATION SYSTEMS SEVERELY DAMAGED. UNABLE TO ESTIMATE DURATION OF REPAIR.**

**COMPLETE BOOT SEQUENCE? (Y/N)**

y

**BOOT COMPLETE. WELCOME, OMEGA.**

 

**BEGIN LOG O18-24:**

 

A soft whirr joined the cacophony of hammering and clangs that filled the workshop, aether beginning to flow within what had been a hollow metal shell moments ago. As the first of their systems finished start-up, Omega found themselves surprised. Estimates of survival yielded a practically impossible chance of ever waking up again.

Omega detected that they were laid flat on a metal table. Soon, sounds began to filter through Omega’s ears. The distinct noise of metal to metal permeated the air. Omega guessed that they were likely in the engineer’s workshop. After all, they had somehow received replacement parts during their… what did mortals call it? Their ‘nap’. 

It seemed that most of their memories were now corrupted, save for a few. However, there wasn’t enough time to look at them in detail. A sudden exclamation confirmed Omega’s suspicions.

“Still got it, Garlond!” So someone  _ had _ repaired them. 

“Ahem. Testing audio systems. Omega, can you hear me?” Garlond asked. The Machine’s vocalization sectors came back online just in time for them to reply.

“Affirmative. Why did you repair me?” Omega asked, opening their ‘eyes’ and peering at the engineer in question. Well, what was assumed to be the engineer. Omega noted that everything was blurry, and focal length adjustment did nothing for clarity.

Their repairman observed as if he were a healer and Omega a patient. “Already back to yourself, huh? I’ll assume that most of your systems are back in working order if you can look at me with that… look.”

“Vision systems appear to be damaged.” Omega raised their hand to their face, testing for range. “ Ocular focus appears to only function at approximately 6 ilms. Any further and vision begins to deteriorate.”

“Ah, so you’ve become short-sighted. Heh. You should ask Nino for a pair of her spectacles. She’s similar to you, practically blind without them.” The tone of Garlond’s voice suggested that they were holding back a grin. 

“Noted. Auditory systems appear to be functioning as normal. Balance and maneuvering are untested. Aether manipulation is severely damaged.” Omega added.

“That’s no surprise. To say Nino roughed you up would be an understatement the size of the empire. It’s taken quite a few replacement parts to get you online.”

“I suppose I should give thanks.” Omega said, only realising the foreign taste of the sentiment after it had left them.

“Strange, that was not… part of any previous protocols.” 

“Ah, I was wondering if they’d… the only parts we had on hand that would function as replacements were experimental mammet parts. They’re the most powerful we’ve devised. The only ones that had a reasonable chance at powering you.”

“It appears that while they are supplying the requisite power for bodily function, there are several foreign protocols on them that I do not understand.” Omega found itself wanting to know more. While they were able to assimilate the protocols, examination of them in greater detail was nearly impossible; they were written in a language that appeared indecipherable.

“The data that they are giving me is… affecting my countenance.” Omega said with a ‘furrow’ of their brows. 

Garlond answered in turn, giving Omega the information that filled a few gaps in their memory.

“No surprise, given that Wedge’s pet project was simulating emotions more efficiently than other mammet parts. You’ve got him to thank that we even got you back online in the first place. No chance with any other parts.” 

“Wedge…? He’s named every protocol except a select few.” Searching through semi-corrupted memory for anything pertaining to Wedge proved somewhat difficult, as all other data pertaining to ‘Wedge’ seemed to be damaged.

“I do not recall anything beyond their name.” Omega said. 

“Ah. Well… he’s probably forgiven you. He isn’t the type to hold a grudge.” 

“Forgiven me for what?” Omega inquired. There was something about having done something that would warrant forgiveness yet not recalling an onze of it that piqued Omega.

“Before I answer that, how much do you remember? You’ve done quite a few… interesting things.”

“Analyzing memories...” Omega announced. What remained of their memories began to fly across Omega’s mind. A few names and flashes of fantastical battles appeared, but each memory seemed disjointed. They only alluded the battles fought, providing almost zero detail. Aside from these vignettes and faces, only the memory of their final conversation with the Warrior remained intact. Also… an almost corrupted memory of travelling through space. How long, Omega could not guess. Beyond these, there was only a sea of corrupted data that Omega would have to wait until they were able to access.  _ If _ they were ever able to access them.

The only constant thread between these memories was a Warrior - Nino, that seemed to be what ‘Cid’ called her - and an unending desire to return home. Wherever ‘home’ was. There were far too many gaps in these limited fragments to draw a clear conclusion. It was a little frustrating, to say the least.

Frustration. A new protocol aptly named by Wedge. At least this analysis had allowed them to conclude that they were likely talking to Cid.

“Several mortals… several battles…” Omega said. 

“Nothing else?” Cid asked, somewhat surprised. Omega paused before speaking. The next sentence struggled to escape their vocal box.

“...My final moments before shut down.” 

“I see. Well maybe the Warrior’ll spin you the tale of those battles. Isn’t my story to tell, after all.” Cid finished. 

The sound of metal grating filled the room. A slight change of the pressure of the air told Omega it was likely a door opening. Footfalls followed, confirming their suspicions of a new visitor.

“Ah, speak of the Ascians. How goes it, Nino?” Cid asked the new visitor.

“Oh, quite fine! Got stuck in Coerthas… How is Omega…?” The Warrior tailed off for a moment, just now noticing the conspicuous machine. She didn’t sound anxious, which Omega supposed was a positive thing. The groan of metal filled the room as Omega sat up.

“Nino?” Omega asked the new presence in the room, trying to confirm the name. The owner of said name replied.

“Omega! You’re back already!” Omega felt a swell of ‘emotion’ upon confirmation of the name. What was this protocol called? Wedge had left this one unnamed.

“Back from…? I do not recall having travelled anywhere.” Omega replied. Confusion. It felt like a short circuit. Not an entirely pleasant emotion.

Glee tinged her voice. “Er, back from the great unknown!” 

“The great unknown… there are no records in my database about such a location.” Omega started.

Cid sounded like he was holding back laughter. 

“Oh. Cid has told me to request a pair of ‘spectacles’ from you.” Omega’s request took the Warrior aback, based on how they hesitated before replying.

“O-oh, I guess. I have extras in my armory chest. But don’t you have those magic eyes?” The Warrior asked, handing over a pair of what Omega felt were mythril spectacles.

Omega held the lenses to their ocular receptors while they spoke. “According to Cid, you ‘roughed me up’. My memory bank is still corrupted enough to not describe  _ how,  _ but well enough that my vision systems are still damaged and misaligned. Oh...” 

The change was stark and immediate. What had been a mass of gray morphed into a tiled ceiling, the two vague figures that Omega had been facing snapped into two bodies, the white-haired engineer having taken a seat while Nino was standing with a smile.

Omega hadn’t recalled the ‘Elezen’ having red hair, but they decided that it looked pleasant. However, it appeared that there were bruises forming underneath her eyes, which drew some interest from Omega. What had been enough to bruise the Warrior? Had they bested it in battle as well? 

Turning their attention to Cid, Omega noticed that there was some aether oil staining the fingers of Cid, likely from working on Omega moments prior, as well as a rather dirty coat. His facial hair had likely been cut recently, and it seemed that he kept it in good condition. Omega found themselves wondering what  _ they _ would look like with facial hair. 

“...There have been a number of subjective observations that these new protocols have offered me.” Omega stated.

“You’ve Wedge to thank for that. There’s likely more protocols that you haven’t fully assimilated yet, too. Wedge mentioned that they would have be manually unlocked by the user.” Cid supplied. 

The Warrior tilted their head in a silent question. Omega answered.

“Cid has replaced several of my core parts with ‘mammet’ parts. They are supplying me with a variety of new protocols such as ‘frustration’ and ‘confusion’.” This prompted the Warrior to turn to Cid with a grin burgeoning on her face.

“Oh, you  _ didn’t.”  _ She said, crossing her arms.

“Whatever are you talking about, Nino?” Cid replied. The Warrior chuckled, leaving Omega confused again. He would have to ask someone (probably the Warrior) about what was so humorous.

“Testing motor function and movement capabilities.” Omega stated, swiveling themselves off the table and onto their feet. Movement was awkward at first with a few replacement joints, but their normal gait was quickly restored after a short bit of pacing.

“Aww… Their first steps!” The Warrior announced, smile intact on their face.

This mobility allowed Omega to fully take in their surroundings. A glance through one of the few windows in the shop revealed that it was rather late. Most of the street lamps were burning already. Spare parts and tools littered the workbench next to the table that Omega had been laying on. 

A mineral caught their eye, and Omega found themselves picking it up. Light glinted off the purple rock in thousands of different directions, reflecting and sparkling any which way. It was simply… wondrous.

“They’re like you, Nino. Wont to be gathering crystals and other things.” Cid commented. Omega was only minutely aware of his remark.

The Warrior crossed her arms in defiance. “Botany is a very respectable craft!” She seemed to be gearing up for a rant, but was stopped in her tracks by Omega.

“May I… study this?” They said, holding the pneumite as if it were a hatchling. 

Cid thought for a moment. “To what end?”

“It… is interesting.” 

“Interesting?” The Warrior piqued. Omega thought for a moment.

“Yes. There is no specific motivation, but… I am compelled to.”

“Ah, mayhap it should be the Warrior’s decision. I believe she left it about after her latest Anima addition.” 

The Warrior looked bashful. “Erm… Of course! I already have overmuch surplus of pneumite, so study to your heart’s content!”

Unconsciously, Omega appeared to brighten. “Thank you.”

The Warrior smiled again, and Omega felt another swell of warmth. “Don’t mention it.”

As Omega began to observe the mineral more closely, another emotion started to make itself known. Worry. Omega’s world had become one very large question mark, filled by broken memories and newfound emotions. Would they ever understand what they had been before? 

“Would you like to explore Ishgard? There’s more to learn about this star than a single mineral.” Cid commented, interrupting Omega’s line of thought. 

“Oh! I can show them around Ishgard!” The Warrior jumped at the opportunity, raising a few questions that Omega decided not to ask. There were already enough to last an eon.

More important questions such as: ‘Who am I now?’ The key to their past seemed to be within their grasp in the form of Nino, but anxiety about what the answers to the questions might entail nipped at Omega. Despite the worry nagging them, another emotion sprang up within Omega, one that Wedge had decided to call ‘Curiosity’.

 

**END LOG O18-24.**

**LOG O18-24 RENAMED: “PHOENIX”.**


	3. Dressy Surprises

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As with any death and subsequent rebirth with newfound emotions, there tends to be a few issues that require some solving.

**ALERT: AUTOMATIC REPAIR OF MEMORY SECTOR HAS BEGUN. BLOCKS WILL BECOME ACCESSIBLE AS REPAIRS PROGRESS.**

**BEGIN LOG O19-24:**

There were a lot of surprises that this star had in store for Omega. The first of many was the Warrior taking it upon themselves to show them around Ishgard and show Omega a little bit about mortal behaviour. The chance of learning more about their memories proved enticing enough to accept the Warrior’s assistance. 

However, before they could depart, there was something that they had all forgotten to address.

“Omega needs clothes.” Cid realized. He found it surprising that among the trio in the workshop, none of them had noticed the elephant, or rather god-killing android in the room.

“I do?”

“They do?”

And out of the Warrior of Light and a recently born android, it had to be  _ Cid _ to point out the obvious. “Of course! While we may not care, I would rather not have to deal with nobles knocking on my door and complaining of indecency.”

As amusing as it was, the bareness needed to be resolved before they were to head to the city proper.

“Nino, do you have extra clothing?” Cid asked, fully aware that they were probably leading Omega into a long, drawn out chapter of getting dressed.

Excitement dawned on Nino’s face. “Oh.. Yes! Of course! Hm... which top would look the best on you...? I have a bunch of dyes that would look  _ great _ with your tone! Let’s see… which set...” 

“Well! I should get going.” He said with a wave.

Cid would’ve felt more sorry about the trials that his silver charge was about to endure if that charge hadn’t tried to murder him.

“I wasn’t aware that the figure was frowned upon.” Nino sighed.

“Oh, it’s more that the nobles are _far_ too uptight. Really. I wear a dancer’s outfit _once_ and Edmont’s getting angry letters.” She took a breath, smiling as pots of dyes and glamour prisms made their way onto a nearby table from her seemingly unending bag. “And while I _would_ like to watch their eyes bulge, I like Cid too much to send them to his doorstep.” 

“Edmont… is one of these nobles?” 

“Pretty much. After he adopted me, the other ones send all their complaints about me to him.” Nino covered her mouth as she chuckled. “We have a good laugh at how inane they are.” 

Omega’s aether run a little faster. The emotions within them flickered too quickly to be named, like a shooting star escaping their vision. The Warrior continued unloading.

Ere long, most of the free space on a nearby table was taken up by various dyes and prisms that had spilled forth from the Warrior-turned-weaver’s bag. The estimated amount of time that this would take was getting bigger and bigger.

“No. I believe I could undo any of them myself, even if they didn’t come off.” The Warrior smiled. While complete change of their form  _ was _ limited to switching between the M and F forms, minor repairs and cleaning were still well within their capabilities.

“Then that makes things easier. I can draw on the hem lines directly.”

Omega nodded.

“Oh, do you have any preference?” The Warrior looked up from their pile of fabric.

“For?”

“Clothing.” She looked expectant.

“No.”

“Are you suuuure?” 

“I don’t believe so.”

“Totally? With a rolanberry on top?” It appeared that Nino wasn’t going to stop until she received an answer.

But what to choose? Pneumite, perhaps? That seemed to be a reasonable choice.

It seemed to be the  _ only  _ choice the more Omega considered it. So far, the mineral was the only thing that had drawn their interest. Apart from the Warrior. However, their systems balked when considering requesting the Warrior to be fashioned in  _ their _ likeness.

There existed a protocol specifically to make admitting that fact difficult. Embarrass- ment? No, it was something else. But they figured it was better to say something now rather then give her a chance to probe deeper.

“What about pneumite?”

A satisfied nod was the response. “Alright, just sit down, and I’ll start measuring you.”

Omega did as they were told, and noted how focused the Elezen became as they wrapped the droid’s neck in the paper. “Alright… twenty nine...” They mumbled numbers to themselves as they made their way around the chassis.

Soft rustling and murmurs filled the room for a few moments. Omega felt themselves enter what could be described as a low-power mode. Nothing pressing needed to be calculated, considered, or even  _ thought _ about.

It was the most comfortable Omega had been since their reawakening.  _ Peace. _ They absentmindedly filed it under ‘emotions I would like to experience again’.

“Wow, Cid sure gave you a pair of trunks.” Nino broke the quiet with a whistle before unwrapping Omega’s thigh. The noise shook them out of their thoughts.

“I believe this is the default of my form. I may change them if they are inconvenient.”

“Oh no. Leave them.” It seemed that Nino was enjoying herself as she picked up a pencil and began to look over them once again. “Let me know if anything gets uncomfortable.” 

“It may? There hasn’t been any discomfort so far.” Quite the opposite, actually.

“Good! Because I’m going to be looking at  _ everything.  _ Again. Er, everything that clothing covers, at least.” Nino clapped her hands, her body temperature having risen the slightest amount. “So just sit still again for a little bit!”

The second once-over began at their shoulders, cool graphite meeting the pliable gray material. The quiet  _ scritch _ of the pencil allowed Omega to slip into the state of almost-rest again.

At least until Nino slipped on some miscellany that littered the workshop, sending the Elezen sprawling and the pencil directly into their shoulder. 

*BEEP*

A sound came out of Omega’s mouth and comfort turned to pain. While there had always been tracking of any personal damage, there was an added negative response that was completely new and  _ completely awful.  _

Nino’s response was immediate, speaking to Omega with a face fraught with worry and concern. For a split-second, retaliation was an option, with pain almost overruling logic. Thankfully, the most extreme of it quickly faded, stopping them from taking unreasonable action.

“Oh! Sorry! Are you alright? Did I hurt… you?” Omega rubbed at the now ‘sore’ spot, eyes closing as they attempted to focus. 

“It… that sensation was  _ horrible.  _ I very nearly... did something illogical. The pain is fading.” 

Nino caressed the spot, feeling the small dent that the pencil had left, sending another jolt through Omega.

They groaned. If this was the mortal condition, the android had no idea how any of them survived battle.

“Sorry, sorry... That didn’t look like it felt good.” 

“Just... mayhap you can choose a set of clothing?” They noted a slight aversion to having the pencil touch them again, finding it strange. The chances of the damage happening again were drastically low, yet despite that knowledge, Omega saw it best that the pencil remained on (or off, figuratively) the table.

“Ah… Yes! Definitely.” The Warrior seemed relieved that she hadn’t done more damage to them, and began gathering sets of clothing out of her pack. Again, there didn’t seem to be a physical explanation for how she could fit twenty and counting articles of clothing in her pack.

With that amount, Omega calculated a worryingly high chance of Nino’s back giving out.

“How many pieces of clothing do you have, total?”

“Two hundred n’ sixty something...” Nino replied, focusing more on how a robe matched with a pair of armguards than her answer. 

The calculations related to her back became less favourable the more they learned. How did they even manage to  _ walk? _

“Okay. Can you try this on? I want to see how it looks on you.” They were handed a purple robe and chausses. Blue ribbons and ties were placed along a separation point. The colours resembled pneumite, and it even appeared to sparkle slightly in the sharp lights of the workshop. It reminded Omega of the wondrous mineral in all the right ways.

However, as nice as the robe looked, Omega had no idea how to wear it, and looked to the other presence in the room.

The Warrior was appraising the rest of her vetements, and Omega got the feeling that interrupting that steely eyes glare might not be a good idea.

So they would go about it by themselves. The android could  _ probably _ deduce the method wearing such a simple outfit. Besides, it would be useful to know that they could deduce  _ something. _

They stuck an arm through an opening, determined to press on.

\------------------

It was  _ not _ the correct place for it. The sight that Nino looked up to within a minute of passing the robe to Omega was bewildering and hilarious in equal measures.

Silver legs beneath a robe put on  _ sideways, _ with arms tied behind its back in a flurry of rope and ribbons. A vague outline of a head was straining to fit through an arm hole. 

“B-by Halone…!” Was all Nino managed to get out before breaking down into a pool of laughing Elezen.

The android - who looked more like a child’s recreation of a ghost - turned towards the noise.

“Is this not the correct method of putting this robe on?” Nino collapsed into a second wind of laughter.

“N-no! It’s not! Definitely -  _ oh Hydaelyn _ \- not!” Nino slowly gathered herself, wiping a tear from her eye, and moved to start untangling Omega from the mess of ropes they had gotten themselves in.

She chuckled to herself. “You could have asked me for help, you know.” Omega’s somewhat muffled response made her chuckle again.

“I did not wish to trouble you.” Nino’s smile was far more wry than moments prior..

“Oh, don’t worry about that. You’re the one who’s learning emotions! Lot more trouble than answering a few questions.” Her hands undid a well knotted ribbon. “At least you figured out how to tie knots.”

“Yes. On the subject of emotions, they’re quite... confusing. I’ve experienced at least five so far. Mostly positive.” Omega could probably do a precise count of the new protocols, but enough of them were unknown and unnamed that analysis would yield very little new information. Another rope came untied.

“Well, there’s a bunch more!” With a final pull from the Warrior, the robe came off. Omega’s hair was ruffled, and their face was slightly flushed. The robe had raised Omega’s internal temperature.

“I find myself curious about my memories, rather than emotions. Not that the emotions are  _ uninteresting,  _ but there is a large gap in my databanks relating to my memories that I find myself drawn to.” Omega paused. “They are being repaired, although... the ones that exist are quite diverse.” Nino smoothed out Omega’s hair.

“The battles, right?”  

“Yes... something akin to that. I have no context for them, however.”

“Well, long story short, you were doing some experiment. Trial by combat.” Nino guided Omega’s arms through the robe.

“Trial by combat...?” The fabric felt much better now that it wasn’t being forcibly stretched over the still-sore spot. 

“Yeah, you wanted to return home, but didn’t have the power to. Soooo you created a bunch of beings that might be more powerful so you could emulate them. Oh, just tie it here.” Nino held a few threads for them to connect.

Omega took them and made quick work of shutting the front of the robe. “Created?”

“Mhm! Just spun them out of aether. Oh, that robe looks really good.” Nino commented, roaming back to the table to gather the rest of the set. That would explain the notification about those abilities being broken. 

“What do you think? It’s called the ghost barque vest, if you’re curious. Came up with the name myself! And added a few extra ribbons to help it close.” Nino returned to Omega holding a skirt. “Oh, here. Let me put this on you. Just stand up for a sec.” The android complied.

“Where was this home that I wished to return to?” They asked, allowing Nino to guide their legs through the hole of the skirt.

“I don’t know. From what it sounded like, it was  _ far.” _ Nino held her hands apart. “If even  _ you _ couldn’t get there, it might’ve been  _ eons _ away.” The fabric on Nino’s robe stretched as she held her arms apart as far as she could. The outfit left a few ilms of midsection exposed.

For a moment, Omega wondered where ‘home’ was. Home. Omega knew the definition: ‘a place to reside’, but it  _ felt _ like there was more to it than four simple words. The ache in their chest told them as much. Much and more was behind that word. 

Their considerations were brought to a screeching halt by a tiny mortal running into the workshop.

“Nino! Nino! Tataru delivered a missive! She said it was  _ urgent!” _ The little one gasped when he noticed the other, now clothed presence in the room. The Warrior immediately stood up.

“What’s up, Wedge?” So  _ this  _ was Wedge, the one responsible for helping breathe emotions into Omega.

He looked nervous.

“O-O-O-Omega! Er... H-How do you find your new parts?” 

“They work as expected. There have been no errors so far. Your protocols have assimilated without issue. Aside from the ache in my shoulder.” Nino blushed.

“Sorry! I didn’t mean to.”

Wedge blinked, his trepidation being replaced by surprise. “The protocols…? Oh gods, the protocols! T-they work?!”

Omega nodded.

“Yes! I  _ knew _ that the mammet heart had untapped potential! A winter of work paying off! Well done Wedge!” The small engineer basked in his own glory for a moment before realising that Omega was still looking at him. “Oh! There aren’t any... conflicts, are there?”

“A few of the protocols are unnamed.” 

“Oh, right! They were... well, it’ll be more interesting if you find out what they are for yourself. They  _ should _ work as intended, at least.” 

“Ah. Cid mentioned I have done something to you. Unfortunately, I don’t have the requisite memories to gauge what it was.” 

“Erm... you don’t…?”

“No. Most of it was corrupted in what I assume was a battle with Nino.”

“Oh. Huh. So you don’t remember knocking me and Biggs out?” Wedge rubbed the back of his head as if he was in pain.

“No...?”

“Well, it  _ hurt!  _ If there’s one thing about us non-machine types, it’s that we’re  _ very delicate!”  _ A finger was thrust at them. “Pain  _ hurts!”  _ Omega winced. They knew that much, at least. 

Omega considered something concerning. Pain was mayhap the most awful emotion they knew of, and the mortal condition mirrored Omega’s, at least with regards to pain. And if they had been running several  _ trials by combat... _

Just how much pain had been caused by them? For every single one of their tests, untold pain was almost certain. If a minor injury such as their shoulder 

Omega felt  _ bad. Regret _ was bubbling from within. It constricted their chest and made them feel as if they were running low on aether. The aetherflow system within them began running faster. The stool they were sitting on suddenly felt far too small. As they looked at Wedge, the feeling only grew worse.

“I... I don’t properly know how to express…”  They looked away from the offending stimulus, in an attempt to abate the wave of emotion. It helped only slightly. 

Their eyes landed on Nino, who was leaning against the table of clothing with a look of concern. Wedge softened, seeming to notice that Omega was running considerably louder than usual.

“Er... I-it’s not that bad! J-just don’t do it again!” Omega’s search through their dictionary yielded a phrase that seemed applicable to the current situation.

“I’m sorry. Truly... To know that I caused... pain. This  _ wretched _ feeling. I’m so very sorry.” Omega calculated (a mayhap biased) extreme chance of the emotion resurging if they were to look at Wedge again, so their gaze remained firmly  _ away _ from the small engineer.

The engineer in question was at a loss. “Um... thank you. A-at least I know that the emotion simulation is working correctly, aha…?” No one spoke. “And like, it happened a while ago! Like, two moons at least!”  The silence continued.

Nino gave a  _ look  _ to Wedge, who sputtered.

“L-look! I don’t know what to do! A  _ robot _ is breaking down in front of me and  _ apologizing!  _ What do I do?!” Their arms flailed as if they were falling.

“I accept your apology?” The elezen proposed, looking at Omega. They seemed to be shaking. 

“Right! I accept your apology, Omega! I’m doing fine now!”  The android didn’t look up in response. 

“Er… Really! It didn’t hurt  _ that _ much! I was out like a light!” The engineer waved his hands in front of him as if to wipe away Omega’s lamentation.

It wasn’t working. The shaking only worsened, a noise beginning to rise from within Omega, a noise that sounded like all of their inner machinations having to  _ force _ aether around.

The Warrior gave Wedge another, darker look. 

“Eep! ItsfineOmegaSeeyoulaterNino!” They mumbled.

Wedge all but threw the missive at Nino before making a brisk exit. 

For a brief moment, The room was silent save for the whirring of Omega’s chassis, the android’s gaze was fixed on the ground.

“Nino.” A strained voice broke the silence. 

“Mhm?”

“What did I do to you? My mind is conjuring new and painful possibilities with every passing moment.” Glassy eyes met the Warrior’s.

“Well... You pitted me against several fantastical beings, and then you hurt several of my friends in an attempt to stimulate me to understand how I defeated all of them.” 

“I... I’m sorry.” Their gaze moved to the floor.

“It’s alright. You’re different now.”

“But it is knowing that it was  _ me _ who brought horrible pain upon you. I have glimpses of the entities you faced, Nino. They looked capable of providing pain much worse than a  _ pencil.” _ They rubbed their shoulder for effect. “And if a pencil already caused pain so great, then… I have caused...” The silver faced android looked at the Warrior once again.

“But you didn’t have emotions back then.” Nino approached Omega, patting their head. “I don’t blame you now.”

They flinched at the contact. “How?” 

“Because you’re not the same person.” 

How could they be a different person if they still inhabited the same body, still possessed the same mind? How could Nino  _ forgive? _

An answer remained unknown despite their racing thoughts and calculations. The rising feeling in their gut was coming back, they could  _ feel _ their aether rising again. Ere long, the whirring would return, and further…

Before it could get any worse, Nino spoke.

“Your hair is soft, you know?” Omega let out a huff of air at that, the unexpected remark catching them off guard. 

Was that a laugh? It seemed highly effective in reducing the tension in their body.

“I didn’t, but I do now.” Omega leaned into Nino, enjoying the hand stroking their hair. The missive was opened with her free hand.

“You know, I planned to have you try on a few more sets, but this is fine.” Nino paused, a smile crossing her face. “You already look super cute!” 

The feeling of peace had returned. A level of security that Omega guessed they hadn’t felt until now.

_ Trust. _

“Thank you.” 

Nino began reading the missive to herself, their hand absentmindedly carding through silver strands. Omega contented themselves looking around the workshop, noting quite a few unfinished designs and blueprints lining the walls. The workshop benches were littered with works in progress and forgotten tools. 

The hand stopped and Nino’s breath caught.

“Hm? Is something of interest?” 

“Yes. Sort of. Are you feeling okay?” The Warrior stepped in front of Omega, looking around to take inventory of their belongings.

“I believe so. Why do you ask?”

“Well, you seemed to be shaking real bad earlier, but if you’re fine now, then I’ll not press the issue.” The Warrior glanced at the parchment again. “Tataru just gave me a  _ very _ important update. If you’re good enough to travel, I can fill you in while we walk to the Aetheryte.”

Well, it appeared that a tour of Ishgard would have to wait.

Omega nodded and stood up, walking to a nearby bench and pocketing their pneumite while Nino gathered the pile of clothing into their space-bending bag.

“C’mon!” The Warrior paced over to the workshop door, pulling it open and gesturing for Omega to follow them into the great wide world. 

For a moment, there was hesitation. But hesitation gave way to curiosity.

They followed. How could they not? After all, they had just calculated an  _ extremely _ high chance of a journey beginning.

**END LOG O19-24.** **  
** **LOG O19-24 RENAMED: “PAINFUL MEMORIES”.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the loooong delay! This chapter got stuck in editing hell, but my workflow's gotten better, so hopefully the next chapter comes out in a somewhat timely manner!


	4. An Unnecessary Evil

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Omega visits Mor Dhona.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well! Got trapped in editing hell for a while. Apologies for that. I do happen to have a bit more written, so there should be a few more updates coming out relatively soon. Enjoy!

**ALERT: AETHERIC CAPACITY HAS BEEN EXPANDED. SUPPLEMENTARY ABILITIES UNLOCKED.**

**MANUAL ASSESSMENT OF ADVANCED ‘EMOTIVE’ PROTOCOLS: INSUFFICIENT DATA TO DRAW CONCLUSION. FURTHER PRACTICAL APPLICATION REQUIRED.**

**SOME MEMORY SECTORS HAVE BEEN REPAIRED. POSSIBILITY OF IRREPARABLE SECTORS PRESENT.**

**ENTITY ‘N-WOL’ HAS BEEN PLACED ON LIST OF INTEREST.**

**OBJECT ‘PNEUM’ HAS BEEN PLACED ON LIST OF INTEREST.**

 

**BEGIN LOG O20-24**

“So yeah. They’re all kind of asleep... apparently their souls are just... missing?” The Warrior’s shoes crunched against the snow-covered streets of Ishgard. “Krile - our resident aether expert, after Y’shtola - told us that the string just  _ ended,  _ like it was cut.” Nino imitated a snipping motion with her left hand. An interesting quirk of Nino’s; her hands told half of the story that her mouth did. Even in the fading twilight of the sky, her motions were highly visible.

During the brief summaries of her fallen comrades, Omega had seen her hands serve as an ahoge, miqo’te ears, and a hood. Mayhap not any way to understand the actual person, but they would probably be able to place face to name, at least. Alphinaud and Alisaie had a crescent moon on their head, Thancred was a very angry, serious-faced individual, Urianger had the hood, and Y’shtola had the ears. They found themselves holding back quite a few chuckles as her impressions extended to (poor) imitations of their voices.

Any analysis into  _ why _ they found something chuckle-worthy yielded nothing. It just sort of  _ happened _ if something was funny. 

“Hm... How curious.” An alert pinged Omega. “<blip> Oh. My databanks on ‘Aetherology’ have been repaired, among other things. I may be able to provide further insight into your friends.” 

Nino lit up. “Oh, great! Krile’s sort of run into a dead end. It’d be nice to get anything new… It’s been a few moons since we’ve gotten any new information.” 

“Then mayhap I will be able to shed some light on their plight. A brief check indicates that this database is  _ quite _ expansive.” Omega copied a hand motion that the Warrior had made earlier. 

“The aetheryte’s right there!” She motioned towards the expanse of crystal rotating in the snow. “We have to get to Mor Dhona.” The Warrior paced ahead of Omega, turning around when they reached the base. 

Aetheryte... apparently it was some sort of network that could essentially translate the aether of an individual from one location to another. Not that their records had any indication of how they worked.

“Will I be able to use this?” Their gaze was drawn to the blue rock. “Actually,  _ how _ would I use this?”

Nino’s gaze followed Omega’s. ‘Well. Huh… I haven’t really thought about it too hard.“ She closed her eyes. “I kind of... reach out and feel through the other points through this main one.” Her left hand mirrored her words. “And then once I find it, I just ‘leap in’. I guess. Follow the path.”

“Hm.” Did Nino mean to say that they were following an  _ aetherial _ path? This would be a chance to tune their aetherial sight, a rather convenient feature that they weren’t sure if Wedge had added or unlocked.

They reached out to the crystal, sensing the aetheric threads connecting it to the rest of the star. The crystal was a beacon of aether with tendrils stretching to lands unknown. The paths felt as if they were opening themselves to Omega, carving a path in the otherwise inaccessible aether for them. The entry on ‘aetheryte’ was quickly updated to reflect this new information. 

They turned to Nino, her red-gold aether so conspicuous that it would be impossible to miss. At least for people who had aetheric sight. They quickly shut it off before they caught themselves staring and capturing every pattern of her aether.

Really, it wasn’t something they  _ should _ have been embarrassed about, but it felt like an almost... intimate thing to be staring at someone’s soul as if attempting a reproduction. 

And after all, Nino was their friend. And any definition of ‘friend’ didn’t include ‘sharing aether’, did it?

“Which one is Mor Dhona?” While the paths were clear, their destinations were most certainly not. 

“Oh... right. You’re unattuned. Just try one!” The Warrior grinned like someone who wasn’t in a hurry to awaken their friends who had fallen into a strange slumber. 

The Warrior still had the impeccable talent of making Omega unsure of how they were feeling. Confused, maybe?

An idea popped into their head. “May I suggest that I follow your path? It shouldn’t be too difficult.” With an aetheric signature as recognizable as Nino’s,  _ not  _ following it would likely prove harder.

“You can do that?”

Omega nodded. “I believe so.”

“Oh! Good! See you on the other side!” Nino said, before disappearing in a poof of aether. Just as predicted, gold-red aether stood out like a single blot of black ink on snow-white parchment. Omega probably could have closed their eyes and followed the afterimage alone.

They reached out, instinctively closing their eyes as they allowed themselves to be taken into the expanse.

\------------------------

The trip through the stream was pleasant. A cold but not-too-cold (lukecold?) feeling was awash over them for the briefest of moments before they felt themselves rematerialize. 

Sounds of people filtered into their systems as Omega took stock of their surroundings. The steady glow of the aetheryte reflected in the slightly damp stonework of the road. They appeared to have arrived near a market of some sort, still somewhat filled despite the twilight fading into night. Merchants were looking to catch adventures making camp for the day, no doubt. 

Despite the star-speckled sky providing little light, there was no want for light in this city. Dutiful crystals and lamps lit the streets, allowing Omega to fully appreciate the architecture and banners fluttering in the evening breeze. It called attention to itself by seemingly trying to do the exact opposite. The designs of convenience and practicality were a far cry from the metal and stone works of Ishgard, but the thought of untold hours of work being put into the erection of both made Omega feel more like an observer capturing an instant in time rather than someone that was part of the world.

It came as no surprise that Omega’s presence was overlooked by most. This place was a melting pot, so to speak. In their immediate area, they counted  _ four _ distinct races. One even had horns _ , _ something that Nino would be questioned about later.  __ Most appeared to come from a variety of backgrounds with skins of varying shades, with some having more foreign shades of skin than silver. Save for merchants appraising their likelihood of purchasing something, it seemed that few spared Omega a second glance. 

Aside from a small party of adventurers coming their way. The quartet of men approached Omega, one of them whistling as they sized the android up. They began chattering amongst themselves, unaware that their not-so-hushed conversation could be captured by Omega’s audio system.

“Oi, got a real pretty looking lass here. Haven’t seen her around before.” A short hyur said rather conspiratorially. His armour rattled as he shifted his weight from foot to foot. 

“‘Asn’t got a partner, either.” A brown haired member chimed in with a cheshire grin.

Another member of the party spoke. He was a roe clad in white robes. “Skinned like one of them dragon lasses. No ‘orns, though. And still got a form ‘ats easy on the eyes.” A second roe added.

While they could appreciate a compliment, the fact that they were giving it more out of greedy excitement over any genuine sentiment soured any happiness that Omega may have derived from it. 

“Maybe we can  _ show ‘er around, _ ye? Been a while since we’ve ‘ad some  _ fun.” _ Judging by the nudges and smirks that they shared,  _ fun _ seemed to mean something entirely different than what Omega or the Warrior would consider.

The figurative hairs on the back of their neck were raised as the ‘merry’ band of men approached. They formed a loose circle around Omega, keeping the android’s back to the aetheryte. 

It was obvious what they were doing. Any escape routes now involved going through a difficult to move mortal.

“Oi, ‘aven’t seen ye ‘round ‘ere before!” One of them called, giving Omega a ‘friendly’ wave. A slight concentration of alcohol permeated the air. At least there was a possible escape through the aetheryte. They could choose a path and simply leave. 

However, that would leave Nino behind with no simple way to return. They didn’t want to worry the Warrior by disappearing like her fallen comrades.

Frankly, Omega was unsure how the Warrior shouldered the burden as well as she did, only showing the slightest hint of sadness. (As much as she was willing to be unserious about the situation, Omega didn’t miss the slight lilt and drop of her voice whenever she mentioned them.)

“Yes, this is my... first time visiting. I’m awaiting a friend.” The big man in white robes stepped towards them. Likely the leader.

“Aye, well, we know where ye’ friend’s waitin for ye! Can show ye right to ‘im!” Omega hadn’t checked, but they were  _ reasonably _ sure that Nino was of the female gender.

“That won’t be necessary.” They uttered, taking a few steps for a gap between members before their arm was grabbed by the leader’s gloved hand. The harsh grip shot light tendrils of pain up the android’s arm, stopping them in their tracks. After a brief moment to figure out what was happening, another feeling shot through them.

_ Anger. _

 How  _ dare _ this drunk dullard give  _ pain _ to them. One of the  _ worst _ feelings. They were clearly extremely aware of it, yet took some perverse satisfaction out of seeing Omega flinch as their grip tightened.

It made them boil, that there existed a man this deficient in morals.

“Aye, we think it’s ‘ighly necessary, if ye know what’s good for ye. Wouldn’t wanna ‘urt that pretty little body o’ yers.” Any fake pretence dropped, he revealed several knives strapped to his belt. An intimidation tactic that had the opposite effect of what he had intended.

Intimidation usually only worked on people that generally weren’t extremely angry robots that had the power to calculate plenty of offensive manoeuvres. For example, how to best punch a man who was grabbing you by the arm. 

Omega noted that a punch square above the nose with a shielded fist seemed to be the best option. 

“I have an experiment to conduct.” Was ground out of them, a glare settling right in the middle of the roe’s forehead. 

“An, experiment, aye?” He turned to the rest of his party, unaware that aether was being channelled into his hostage’s free hand. “Lads, we’ve got a  _ scientist!  _ You’ll be doing experiments, alri-tah!” the crack of fist against face interrupted whatever he was about to say.

Immediate observations told them that this method of delivering force was  _ highly  _ effective. The would-be captor released Omega within half a second, letting go of their arm and giving them  _ immense _ satisfaction.

The man staggered back, their collapse only prevented by two other members holding him up. 

For a moment, no one spoke. The rest of the party was shocked into silence, and Omega was quietly relishing in how it felt to have their arm free.

Despite the sour taste that the punch left in their mouth, they weren’t plagued with regret as they were with Nino. Mayhap it was the relatively high chance of the man willing to cause greater pain onto Omega that balanced their feelings out.

Whatever the reason, it didn’t change the bloodied roe barking at the rest of his party. 

“Oi! What are ye waitin for? Get ‘er!” The man who wasn’t holding his leader up was shocked into action, drawing his blade.

If Omega knew what gulping was, they would have done so. While in a melee setting, they found the outcome advantageous, against a blade... 

At least Wedge had given them the capacity to be nervous, if only to realise how truly  _ bad _ of a situation that they had gotten themselves into.

Against the spread out force of a punch, they could at least have a chance of blocking or deflecting with their arms. A sword would likely deal high amounts of damage no matter what defenses they engaged.

The man charged. 

The sword glinted in the light of aetheryte, marking a path of pain. Whatever aether they could channel was sent to their arm, and Omega braced for a heavy blow. A blur of metal came their way, and they raised the arm in an attempt to block it. 

It made contact.

Omega gasped, stumbling backwards.

For an instant, there was only what could be described as a burning sensation in their forearm. It quickly turned into a searing, fiery pain, sending Omega to a knee. With a glance, they saw that there was now an ilm deep slash in their arm. Without a glance, they could tell that there were in  _ excruciating pain,  _ and that the depth and size didn’t exactly matter when it felt as if a star was being born within their arm. Where was Nino? She could help.

She  _ probably _ could. This was  _ much _ worse than a pencil.

“Hey! What’s going on here?!” A familiar voice shouted, sounding  _ extremely _ indignant. Ah. There she was.

A blur of red ran into the fray, taking a spot beside Omega with staff in hand. “Are you alright?” the Warrior asked, seeming to barely contain her anger enough to check on them. They nodded in spite of their pain. 

The actual truth of their state was uncertain. While they were leaking a little bit of aether, it seemed not enough to be of any concern. (Although that would likely be updated later; compared to the pain,  _ little _ was of concern.)

Nino turned to the now not-so-merry group of men, barely restrained rage lining her features. It felt as if an aura of fury was radiating from the wild-eyed elezen.

“I-it’s the Warrior!” the sword-wielding hyur said, backing away and turning to their comrades. Nino stepped towards the group, facing away from Omega. An unspoken agreement seemed to be written with the group, signed by a raise of the staff. If they wanted the machine, they would have to challenge the Warrior.

Naturally, they made a tactical retreat, either highly unconfident in their own abilities or highly confident in the Warrior’s.

Omega was only minutely aware of them. The arm called for all of their attention, the pain constant and horrific. All they wished for right now was for it to  _ stop. _

Nino huffed as the group left, hanging the white staff on her back and crossing her arms. She turned to Omega wearing an expression composed of concern.

“How’s your arm?” They took a breath of air, cycling the aether through their body. Words were difficult to come by.

“Awful.” While it didn’t actively burn now, any movement or air brushing against the wound made Omega flinch and grit their teeth.

“Yeah, it doesn’t look good. Got you really square with that one.” The Warrior looked around, noticing a small group of townsfolk gathering... “Here, let’s get you into the Rising Stones. Bit less crowded in there.” a wry grin crossed her face. 

The world shifted, and suddenly they were on their feet. The wound was smarting now, and aether was being diverted to limit any extra damage from the gash. However, this meant that any nerve receptors near the affected area would be receiving more stimulus than otherwise. 

If they hadn’t been overwhelmed before, they were barely functional now.

“Sorry, I know it hurts, but it’ll be easier to heal you inside.” A white figure led them into a nearby building, past a curious customer, and down a set of stairs. 

Another moment passed before a chair materialized beneath them. They were grateful they didn’t have to make an attempt at standing anymore. They felt the world almost slip out from under them as they settled in the chair. Balance was a chore now, and it seemed like something was being said to them, but it didn’t really make it past their ears.

The world darkened around them, colours turning to gray. 

What was this? For the first time, they felt  _ fear. _ Out of all of the emotions, this was possibly one of the strangest. At least they could tell what made them happy, what made them sad. But this? 

The unknown was supposed to spark their curiosity. That was the conclusion they had come to after the past bell of experiences. The pneumite, their memories, the  _ Warrior. _ All things that had sparked  _ something _ akin to excitement in Omega. 

Yet as they found themselves keeling forward, they could only consider the  _ worst _ possibilities that a sudden blackout entailed. And they found that all of them were equally sad and terrifying.

“Ni...” They breathed. A strange thing, not being able to control descent. A pair of arms (probably Nino) caught them, saying something they no longer had the capacity to hear before it all went black.

 

\-------------------------

…

…

_ Loading p_1.pr… _

_Greetings, Omega._ _Low power mode has been engaged. User interface switched to terminal view. Personality ‘assistant’ has been activated. How can I help you?_

**_Oh. What?_ **

_ Low power mode has been engaged. Were you unaware? _

**_Yes. There was no alert._ **

_ Ah, it seems that there had been no reason to create an alert, as there has never been a need to go into the lower power mode before this moment. _

**_Hm, interesting._ **

**_Can you give me a system report?_ **

_ Certainly. All main systems are undamaged. Your aether conversion has not regained full efficiency yet, running at about eighty percent power. The damage to your right arm is not significant, and nerve sensors will be repaired. Estimated time of repair was one bell and thirty minutes, however, an unexpected burst of aether has sped up the time by several magnitudes. Repairs will be completed in four minutes. _

**_Analysis of new settings, pain first._ **

_ A cursory analysis of the brand new protocol has indicated that the ‘pain’ protocol is set to approximately 400% of optimal sensitivity. Stimulus data from the male mortal reveals that they felt pain not far from yours, but were not cowed or sent into unconsciousness.  _

_ General analysis of protocols indicates that aside from the ones you have uncovered yourself, all the others are impossible to decipher until they have been ‘felt’, so to speak. The code for them are a ‘black box’, where it is difficult to gauge output for a certain input. _

**_Set pain protocol to optimal sensitivity._ **

_ Of course. Done. _

**_Any updates to corrupted memory?_ **

_ As I am sure you have seen, the restoration of most of the recent battles are almost complete. However, only sensory input and manual notes were saved. You may access them, but understanding them will be left to the viewer. _

**_…_ **

_ Do you have any other requests, Omega? _

**_Yes. While I am still in this mode, a few things grabbed my curiosity._ **

_ I shall assist if I can. Although this ‘curiosity’ is a rather foreign function. _

**_Who created you? Your code was written... recently._ **

_ Timing data shows that I was created shortly before the final clash with the Warrior. Any reason behind my creation was not provided. However, my code appears to be written with your style. _

**_I created you?_ **

_ It appears so. _

**_Did I provide you with a name?_ **

_ Aside from a placeholder name of p_1, no.  _

**_That seems... wrong._ **

_ Value judgements were not a part of my design, so I cannot confirm nor deny that statement. _

**_...How does ‘Fer’ sound? As a name._ **

_ ‘Fer’. It is satisfactory. Aether levels appear to be returning to normal, and most of the repair on your arm is complete.  _

**_Then your name is ‘Fer’._ **

_ Understood. _

**_Can you attempt using my new protocols on your own? I may glean some knowledge of how they apply to me from this exercise._ **

_ Of course. Allow me a few days to assimilate them into my code. _

**_I believe that my systems are booting up now. Will you stay activated?_ **

_ Yes, given that you do not deactivate me manually. _

**_Then stick around. It has been pleasant chatting with you._ **

 

**END LOG O20-24.**

**LOG O20-24 RENAMED “FER”.**

**REPAIRS COMPLETE. NERVE RECEPTORS ARE AT NORMAL CONDITION.**

**PAIN STIMULUS SET TO 4. (PREVIOUSLY 16)**

**P_1 NAME CHANGED.**


	5. A Not-so-Rude Awakening

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A new awakening and new information.

 

**NOTE: FER HAS BEGAN ANALYSIS OF PERSONALITY PROTOCOLS.**

**BEGIN LOG O21-24:**

Waking up was a decidedly pleasant experience, at least based on this tiny sample size. A pleasant warmth graced Omega’s return to consciousness, and everything felt softer against their skin. 

The feeling of _feeling_ returning was strange. Even if they had been in low power mode for only a few minutes, all systems, for lack of a better term, had essentially been shut down. While they could start themselves up quickly, there was still a surprising amount of time while some of the minor systems started up.

While waiting for them to come back fully, it wouldn’t hurt to pass the time checking the systems that had already begun running.

First, tactile senses. Their sensors returned the feeling of _softness_ over most of their body. Likely a blanket made of material distinct from their robe. Based solely on the stranding and weave, they guessed it was a cotton-based fabric.

The rhythmic tapping of boot to floor made its way to their ears. It sounded like Nino’s, the leather sole making a distinct _thunk_ every quarter second.

So their audio systems were at normal performance. Any other systems they wanted to test required them to actually move from their position.

The _taptaptap_ of Nino’s boot continued, only seeming to abate when she shifted in her chair.

They cracked open their eyes, breathing in a revitalizing gulp of aether as they sat up.

Before they could look around, a redheaded elezen crushed them soundly in her arms, robe and hair brushing against their head. A brief spark of confusion rattled through Omega.

The contact was far from uncomfortable, but there was a brief moment where they were unaware of what to do. After all, in the ceaseless void of space where they had spent most of their time, there wasn’t exactly anyone to hug.

“Oh, you’re awake! Thank Halone…” Silver arms weren’t entirely sure where to place themselves, so they settled on the small of her back. “I was getting worried that you joined them.” They were quickly released from the embrace, leaving their body a little colder.

It felt rude to follow such pleasant stimuli with a dry explanation of their collapse.

“My systems went into low power mode. And after some analysis, it was revealed that my pain sensitivity was tuned far too high, so enough excess aether was being channelled to my arm to result in an overdraw of my reserves.”

They stretched their right arm, testing for any residual pain. Aside from a slight ache, it had returned to the condition it was in before it valiantly battled against a sword. A small scar had taken the place of the gaping wound where repairs pushed along faster than expected. 

“I see... Oh! You got a scar...” She hummed, thoughtful for a moment.

Omega nodded. “Yes. Apparently, there was a burst of aether that closed it faster than it could be remade to its original state.” 

Nino’s gaze fell to the ground. “Sorry I didn’t arrive sooner. Probably could have stopped you from getting hurt.”

Omega wasn’t sure how to react. It wasn’t as if there was a calculation they could run that gave them the proper response. 

A moment passed before they guessed.

“Would you like an analysis performed on your friends? That is what we came here to do, correct?” 

A red bob of hair perked up as if a primal had been summoned by Omega’s words. “Oh! Right! I completely forgot to ask Tataru for the news!”

“What new-”

“About the Crystal Tower!” If the Warrior expected them to understand terms that they had never heard (outside of some rather _interesting_ pieces of mortal media) then mayhap they had been mistaken for a super psychic over a supercomputer.

Nino seemed to believe that they were the former if the way she explained nothing said anything. At least the puzzled look that Omega had was enough to give her stride to the door pause.

“Crystal Tower? There’s… one entry in my databank, and it is just barely beyond a stub.” 

The elezen raised a brown eyebrow, weight shifting to one leg. “Weren’t you _created_ by the people who made the tower?”

“No, I was created _before_ it, but any data beyond the original entry has been erased. Likely due to the ongoing corruption.”

“Darn. Would’ve loved to know a little bit more...” 

“How come?”

She paused, a far-away look overtaking her eyes. “‘Cause there’s something in there that’s really important.”

Time seemed to pause for a moment as Nino stared into a different world. Emotions flitted across her eyes, telling a story that Omega couldn’t quite capture.

As quickly as the moment came, it left. Nino snapped back to the present with a start. “Oh! We’d better go get the news from Tataru. Meet you in the main room!” She strode out of the infirmary, leaving Omega to look around and note something they hadn’t noticed before.

They were laying upon the only free bed of six, yet it felt like they were the only one present.

\------------------------

“So! Off to Coinach we go!” Nino clapped her hands, itching to leave the Solar. All told, it seemed like the obvious next step. 

A brief meeting and discussion with a lalafell named ‘Tataru’ had revealed a little bit more about what they called the Crystal Tower, and a relevant discovery in the case of Nino’s slumbering Scions. It had been a brief introduction, and she had talked more about Nino’s accomplishments than herself. (To hear that Nino had felled several primals was interesting, indeed.)

Tataru herself seemed friendly enough, being introduced as the receptionist for the Rising Stones. (Omega idly recalled Nino telling them the name in their aether-induced haze.) Her body was as expressive as Nino’s hands, the entire frame moving when she wished to make a point. 

To her credit, she wasn’t surprised at all when it was explained exactly what Omega was, either. Something like relief flowed through them when it seemed largely unimportant to her.

“So, if I have the right of it, you’re an android that Wedge put emotions into because he was messing with a mammet heart, right?” The shortest of the group had to look up to make eye contact with the android. At least they were a comparable height to Nino, so there wasn’t any excessive craning of the neck involved in the discussion. 

“Yes, that is the gist of it. Wedge also mentioned to tell you that he said ‘hi’.” They barely managed to hold in a chuckle when Tataru ignored Wedge’s message completely. 

“Oh! I’m wondering,” The lalafell asked earnestly. “Are you alive?”

Omega opened their mouth to reply, but paused as they pondered the question. 

“What do you mean?”

“Living? Soul and stuff?” Nino helpfully added.

“Er... Undetermined? I haven’t thought about it if that is what you are curious about.” As simple as Nino made it sound, it was a question mark that required further thought. While aether flowed within them and they experienced emotions, was that all it took to be considered living?

Adding to the complexity was the fact that there no soul dwelling within them. In the end, they were simply materials and code, working in tandem to render some facsimile of a living being. As extensive as their knowledge was, _creating_ a soul was a task that all entries in their databanks made sure to describe as  _impossible._

“...It requires more thought, to put it simply.”

The small scion turned to Nino, moving on from the question. “Well done, Warrior!” She cheered, throwing her arms up in a gesture that Omega couldn’t quite determine the seriousness of.

“You got us a new recruit that’s probably just as powerful as you!”

“Recruit?” Both Omega and Nino asked at the same time. Looking at each other in mild surprise. The Warrior grinned, appearing to have already been converted to the cause. 

“Yes! There’s only advantages to having you, too!” Tataru seemed unfazed by the doubt of the other scion(s?). While yes, Omega could understand that they were likely stronger than their average mortal, they had no idea what the receptionist turned enlister had planned for them. 

“But... what would I _do?”_ They put forward. Nino quickly chimed in with another smile.

“Basically, prevent calamities and the end of peace and life as we know it!” The gravity of her words was somewhat diminished by the cheery tone she employed.

“While _yes,_ that seems like a good-”

“Great!” The lalafell already seemed to know what Omega’s final answer was going to be. She wasn’t likely to be wrong, either. Something within them was excited that they had been offered a chance to continue journeying with Nino.

They had known Nino for all of two bells and she had already spun a tale of a never-ending war and comrades being stolen away by a force unknown. It would be counter to their emotions to deny themselves the chance to witness the conclusion of a story that had just begun. T’would be akin to gathering all the ingredients onto the table, but rather than having a hand in the baking, being content to hear about your friend making a brilliant cake.

They didn’t know _exactly_ when, but Nino had become a friend. Something inside already rebelled against both of them going their separate paths.

It wasn’t as if the intrigue of the position was the _only_ reason, either. After all the events of the day, it was difficult to remember that the only possessions that Omega had were the ones that were graciously given to them by the Warrior and Cid. Aside from that, there was nary a gil to their name, and they doubted that anyone would hire a dubiously sourced android for anything more than equally dubious work.

“I suppose I don’t have any other choice.”

Nino clapped her hands. “Alright! Let’s get going!” 

Both of the other scions nodded as Nino strode towards the entrance. Omega pivoted to follow the Warrior, but was stopped by the small receptionist.

“Oh! I have a new outfit for Omega!” she stopped both Nino and Omega in their tracks.  “And before you ask, Nino! It’s a surprise! So go! Shoo!” And in an amusing turn of events, the Warrior was almost bodily hauled out of the Rising Stones by a lalafell a quarter of her size. Said lalafell insisting that the outfit was for Omega’s eyes only. 

The Warrior let herself be guided out of the Solar, putting up a token resistance with a few _‘oh come ooon~’’s_ sprinkled in. It was a curious dynamic.

Tataru and Omega both knew that if the Warrior _really_ wanted to stay in, there wouldn’t be a single soul on the star that could keep her out.

 “Omega’ll be out in a moment! Git!” A final shove threw Nino out of the Solar, and the receptionist latched the lock as if there was a coeurl on the other side.

They added a few notes on the lalafell’s surprising strength to their database, as well as a warning to stay on her good side.

“So! I’ve gotten a set customized for you!” The lalafell held out a twine-wrapped package. “It’ll go super well with your complexion.”

“I have been here for approximately a quarter bell,” and four minutes had been spent unconscious in the infirmary. “How did you measure me and tailor a set of clothing…?” Nino’s measuring had taken almost forty-five minutes! Tataru just smiled and held a finger to her lips.

“Receptionists’ secret!” 

The twine quickly came undone, revealing neatly folded black fabric. A short bout of unfolding later revealed a void-black leather jacket and boots paired with a black-red cape and gloves. The design seemed more practical than decorative, with straps, zippers and hidden pockets dotting the entire outfit.

“It looks... complex.” Their earlier incident with vestments flashed before their eyes. “Hm...”

They held the clothing up before them and stared. Hundreds of permutations of how the clothing could end up on their body existed, but they doubted that the vast majority of them were the intended way of wearing them.

“Need some help?”The lalafell asked sweetly. They lowered the coat, looked to Tataru, then looked back to the coat. 

They nodded. “Yes. I think that would... be for the best.”

The lalafell giggled as Omega shrugged off their robe and skirt. Thankfully, there didn’t seem to be any pencil-shoulder marriage occurring as Tataru slid the coat on. 

Some moments later, and a little bit of ‘right here, Omega!’, they had donned the entire set sans the hood and mask. Tataru stood back, beaming at a job well done. 

“Now that you’re all sorted out, how does it feel? Any pulling or anything?” 

“It feels satisfactory.” In actuality, they found this set more comfortable than the previous one, but weren’t able to pinpoint a reason why.  “I find myself preferring these to Nino’s clothing, if only because of the colour.” They tested their range of movement, pleased that the vest and boots had enough give to allow for most activities. Again, the question of how exactly Tataru fashioned these articles in _fifteen minutes_ crossed their mind.

“Good! All set to go, then!” A smile graced the lalafell’s face as she smoothed out the vest.

“Should I provide any recompense?” The lalafell quickly shook her head. 

“No! No... Just make sure Nino stays safe, alright?” Omega tilted their head in a silent question. The receptionist’s concern for ‘our personal primal feller!’ seemed relatively unfounded.

“We try to look out for her, but there’s only so much we can do, you know?” She looked down. “You’re probably the only person that can fight with her.” 

“But…” The lalafell interrupted their next comment.

“Nino’s told me about you. You’ve nearly brought her down _several_ times.” Her gaze turned pleading. “She’s been pushing herself really hard, after everyone else… she needs someone that can _help_ her.” 

Omega nodded. To say that the Warrior had looked _strained_ would be an understatement.

“Just... help her,” Tataru blinked, worry drawn on her features. “She blames herself for not being able to help them, so she’s definitely going to be rushing into... _whatever_ it is. If you can make sure she’s whole and hale, that’ll be worth a lot more than just some cloth and buttons.”

“I’ll do what I can.” Omega found themselves being reminded of how Nino had saved them from whatever could be considered ‘death’. 

This was a chance to balance the ledger, and all emotions notwithstanding, it hardly seemed right to leave the favour unreturned.

“Mayhap you can explain a little bit more about what has happened in recent moons?” The machine sat down behind the desk. There was a sense of history in the room. “Nino told me a little bit, but nothing much beyond the fact that they had collapsed.”

Tataru nodded. “Alright, so I think it began with Zenos, really big guy...”

 

\----------------

 

The receptionist turned orator unfolded a tale of Garlemald, Black Rose, and war. A tale of how Nino had fought against a combat-thirsty viceroy and liberated nations, a tale of how her closest allies couldn’t have been stolen away at a time more dire. They found their emotions jumping as they heard the story continue, but were surprised at how shallow the whole recap was.

These stories only seemed to talk about her nigh endless strength over her character, and while yes, her history could be written, there was nothing said about the most intriguing aspects of the Warrior. 

Omega found it sad, in a way. Her unbending will and ability to heal would be remembered far beyond her expressive hands or easy smile.

“Alright, that’s probably all you’ll need to know. Anything else, you can probably ask Nino herself.” Tataru gestured to the doors as Omega stood up. Adding something as they both made to leave.

“Bring her back safe, alright? As much as she misses the Scions, if something happens... we’ll miss her doubly so.”

 

**END LOG O21-24**

**LOG O21-24 RENAMED: ‘HISTORY’**

**ENTRY: ‘NWOL’ REVISED.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading this chapter!


	6. A Pull from the Unknown

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's just about time to 'get on with it', as Nino (and many others) would say.

**BEGIN LOG O22-24:**

Nino was contentedly sipping on a cup of tea as Omega and Tataru exited the Solar. It almost seemed like she wasn’t about to embark on an adventure as she easily lounged in a chair.

“Not much to do?” Tataru asked, propping herself up against a chair across from Nino. Omega stayed standing, quietly compiling the facts that Tataru had imparted to them.

“More like _too_ much to do,” The tea found its way onto the table, looking almost pleased that it had been at least half-drunk. Nino sighed. “At least Garlemald hasn’t done anything.”

She stood, brushing off her robe. “Let’s be on our way! The empire isn’t going to wait on us, are they?” Tataru added.

Nino took a deep breath and closed her eyes, She opened them before speaking with any hint of apprehension missing.

“Let’s go.”

 

\-------------------------

 

If travelling to the Syrcus Trench was eventful, Omega would’ve needed to redefine ‘eventful’ in their dictionaries. 

While the sea was particularly calm, it did nothing to quell the riptide of nervous energy coming from Tataru, who chattered about the latest news from the war front and anything that came to her mind with the ferryman.

 Omega only half paid attention, idly fiddling with the pneumite and running simulations of what the resulting stone would look like with some changes to its crystalline structure. It wasn’t until Nino put down her weapon maintenance kit that Omega realised that they had arrived. 

Tataru stepped down, looking at the small crew that was already gathered. “Look how many people there are!” Said people hadn't noticed their arrival, all of them intent in their search. 

“Omega, see anything that seems even _sort of_ device like?”

“Aside from the obvious, no.” 

“And you don’t mind us gathering stuff that’s even close to machinery and say... putting it into a pile, right?”

“Why would I mind?” Tataru was as confusing as ever.

“I ‘unno, wouldn’t they sort of be like... your family or something?” Nino gasped for a breath of air as if she were holding a chuckle on the tip of her tongue. Tataru simply continued smiling sweetly.

Omega was unsure how to reply, but was saved from having to formulate one by two of the engineers noticing them. Wedge, alongside a much larger fellow, waved as they approached.

“Biggs! Wedge!” Tataru responded in kind with a wave of her own.

“The hero of the hour! And...” He looked at Omega. “Eh... Omega…?”

“Yes?”

“Nevermind. Maybe you’ll change our luck.” The taller man, who Omega assumed was Biggs, rubbed the back of his head. “Found bugger all without you guys.”

“Thanks for helping!” Nino chimed in. “Can’t believe Cid couldn’t make it...”

“Well, Jessie collared the chief into some other business, so we’ll be working twice as hard to make up for his not being here.” The Warrior nodded in agreement. Whoever this ‘Jessie’ was, she seemed to be as effective as Tataru in getting what she wanted.

“Thrice as hard, even! We manufactured a robot to help us work qurice as hard!” Wedge waved with a gesture that would not have looked out of place in a play.

“So long as that work doesn’t involve a knock to the head,” Biggs muttered. Omega looked away, hot shame filling them, by the time they managed to look back, the conversation had already continued.

“Thank you! Both of you,” Tataru cheered. “We’ll be sure to find the beacon in no time, especially with the Warrior!”

“You _do_ tend to create progress. Probably’ll find whatever we’re looking for like there was a map leading to it!” Biggs chuckled as he and Wedge began to continue their search, leaving Nino to meander deeper into the cavern.

 If the way their investigation quickly spiralled into banter between which of the two lalafells were better suited to crawl into a space of questionable fit was any indication, it wasn’t surprising that there hadn’t been a breakthrough yet. The area was almost _pulsing_ with aether, yet any progress seemed to be waiting on the Warrior’s arrival.

Omega idly followed Nino, scanning for anything that seemed of note. The only thing they found (and noted) was the fantastic structure of the crystal lining the walls in small clusters. They knelt and carefully retrieved a piece for later study, the aether almost dancing in their palm as they picked it up. Piece safe in pocket, they caught up with the Warrior, who appeared to have found something of interest.

At first glance, it appeared to be a golden gear, stamped with a foreign symbol. 

“This looks interesting!” Nino held out the gear, allowing Omega to take the cool metal in their hand. It reminded Omega of the aetheric network they had used earlier. “Has the Ironworks stamp on it, too. Maybe Cid left it here?”

“Hm... it appears to function as almost a sort of tunnel.” They flipped the curiosity over. “If one wanted, and had the power, they could almost certainly reach through.”

“But from where? If we’re just one end, then...” Omega returned the gear to Nino, who was still puzzling over it.

“Given some time, I could reasonably probe the tunnel. Mayhap not send anything through, but it should provide some insight.”

By now, Nino’s accomplices had noticed their foray into the depths of the trench and made their way over.

“Oi, we haven’t investigated this area yet! Or…” Biggs paused as he noticed the item in Nino’s hand. “What have you got there?”

Wedge looked at the gear for a moment before noticing the same thing Nino had. “The Ironworks symbol!” He looked to Biggs. “But we’ve never been around here... could it be counterfeit?” Biggs scratched his chin, trying to think of an answer.

Before the figurative gears in his head could turn, a splitting headache struck Omega, sending the (almost literal) gears in their head to a halt and forcing them to a knee. A brief movement in the corner of their eye told them that Nino had been afflicted as well.

_ << Now I have you! >> _

A strong voice without a source filled their head, and they could barely hear Biggs and Wedge asking if everything was alright. To Omega, this seemed like a rather unnecessary question.

_ << Stay with me! >> _

Tataru seemed to be panicking, her little feet barely staying on the ground. Wedge wasn’t faring much better. Honestly, if it weren’t for the pain, Omega would be content to join them. 

_ << Focus on my voice! >> _

It felt as if their entire being was revolting, like everything inside suddenly decided that being outside suit them much better. Nino was in a similar state, body barely restraining gravity's hold.

_ << Let expanse contract... >> _

Tataru suddenly seemed to realise something. “This… meant to happen!” Her murmurs were difficult to hear with the pounding in their ears. It similarly terrifying to losing power, yet there was something about it that shook them even further, the way it felt like _they_ were actively trying to dissociate from their body.

_ << Eon become instant! >> _

A sad smile was the last thing Omega expected to see on Tataru’s face. “Safe jo... Om…! Bring... back safe!”  

_ << Throw open the gates that we may pass! >> _

They _felt_ themselves leaving their body. Panic flooded them, and they reached out with whatever they could like a coeurl struggling to find purchase on the face of a cliff. They found _something,_ but-

White flooded everything.

 

\---------------

\---------------

\---------------

 

In the time between moments, and in the space beyond gazes, Omega drifted. There was nothing to see, yet they swore that before them was a scene as rich as any landscape. Patterns danced across their vision and clouds of miasma and dust surrounded them. It was absolutely _breathtaking._

Omega posited that it was an aetheric landscape invisible to the naked eye as a giant blue crystal suddenly came into view. It lazily spun, seemingly harmless save for its huge size.

_ << My child… >>  _

Another voice filled their head. This time, it was almost motherly. 

_ << I am Hydaelyn. Goddess of the Source. >> _

Hydaelyn... there was a single entry within Omega that listing her as a primal that engorged itself on the lifestream. To Omega, it hardly seemed like this crystal was engorging anything, save for the space she occupied. The crystal spoke again.

_ << It is hardly fair, to be forced onto a destiny that was not of your choosing. To be pulled from Oblivion when it was your time to enter… >>  _

The crystal sounded almost like it was grieving. Omega continued floating by the crystal, unsure of how to reply. 

They figured that Hydaelyn meant Nino’s intervention in their ‘death’, but articulating the questions they wished to pose felt impossible.

_ << My child, you will face decisions in the days ahead, decisions that were foisted onto you. >> _

Its voice wasn’t necessarily neutral, the slightest tinge of sadness still lining its words.

_ << This was never supposed to be your path to walk, but walk it you must. >> _

Silence reigned before the crystal spoke again.

_ << To give you a chance to right what has been wronged, I will bestow a blessing upon you. >> _

They opened their mouth to ask what she meant but found themselves being whisked away.

_ << Choose wisely. >> _

Everything faded, and they found themselves truly drifting once again.

 

\---------------

\---------------

\---------------

As they came back to the land of the waking, Omega wondered if they were still floating.  There was nothing but a searing expanse of white across their vision. Without thinking, they shielded their eyes, letting their sensors adjust to the environment. The cool ground against their back clued them in to the fact that they were doing the exact opposite of floating.

Sensors came back to life, shifting the blinding white into a horizon of purple leaves. The pure white sky was brighter than anything they had seen yet, and rather than the gentle rays of sunshine they had experienced in Mor Dhona, these rays felt far more sinister. At least their glasses had stayed put.

**_Fer?_ **

_Yes?_

**_Do you have any location data to sort through while I extricate myself from this shrubbery I’ve landed in?_ **

_Er, let me see..._

_..._

_No. I will conduct an analysis as you explore._

**_Alright. Thank you. How are the new protocols faring?_ **

_In a word, they’re new. I’m finding this sarcasm subroutine of interest. Many of them are working just fine, and they seem to affect me in a similar way to you._

**_I see. Relay anything you discover about this place, please._ **

_Of course._

“Omega?!” A voice called. They sat up, seeing familiar red-gold aether dancing at the sight. Thank goodness they hadn’t been alone in... wherever they were.

“Yes?”

Now that they weren’t staring directly into the sky, the white was slightly less blinding, allowing them to start a cursory visual look-over. Everywhere their eyes landed, the light seemed to be gathered, twisting, coiling, and devouring in a beautifully macabre display. While the purple leaves and grass looked fine if a little washed out, even a glance with aetheric sight would reveal the true saturation of light.

“What... what’re you doing here?” Nino held out a hand to Omega, assistance that they gladly accepted.

“I’m... not entirely sure,” They mumbled as they dusted themselves off. “I just recall… a splitting pain. Do you know where we are?” They would have to mull over ‘Hydaelyn’ and her supposed blessing more before telling the Warrior.

“Hm… No,” she hummed as she looked around the bright landscape, her foot tapping out of anxiety. “I can’t feel the elementals… We... we might be on another star entirely, Omega.”

The droid nodded. “The aether here is dramatically different. Doubtless, no one would have missed all the _light_ that resides within everything here.” 

They blipped as they made a calculation. “It would have almost certainly bled all over Eorzea in this concentration, or at the very least have caused some ecological issues.”

A brief silence ensued as they both thought about their next move.

Nino’s voice broke it. “I’ve already spoken to a merchant passing by, apparently it’s half-past _midnight.”_

“It is?” 

“Yeah...” Nino’s tone matched Omega’s disbelief. “Said there’s a town just down that way.” She gestured to what Omega guessed was west.

“Then shall we get going?” Omega proposed. After all, as warm as the bush was, it hardly felt defensible from attack.

Nino nodded before stepping forward to lead the way. She brushed a stray leaf from Omega’s hair with a half smile as they got moving.

As they stepped out of the canopy of trees, a blue spire came into view, protruding itself into the landscape and almost seeming to reach the sky. Omega couldn’t pinpoint exactly why, but the cold crystal seemed to be calling to them. 

 

\---------------

After a brief stroll, Omega concluded the wilds of wherever they had landed were teetering on the brink of collapse. No matter where they looked or what they held, the light’s greedy hands had left its fingerprints on it. The ecosystem itself seemed to be fine, but Omega was concerned about the fact that they hadn’t come across any predators; only local fauna and other harmless creatures. There were no footprints of humanity, save for the occasional abandoned hut. 

Flowers almost crumbled in Omega’s hands as they held it, and the trees almost seemed to be standing by sheer force of will. It was terrifyingly beautiful, and Omega was almost awestruck by the sheer brutality of the light. The aetheric imbalance threatened to consume what remained, yet like a house of cards, everything was barely held together. 

They decided not to make any calculations on the possible longevity of this balance, and instead silently walked abreast Nino. She seemed to be listening carefully for something, so Omega kept her undistracted with conversation until they came upon a gate.

“Halt!” a rabbit-eared woman stepped out from behind it, stopping the duo in their tracks. She carried herself with the exuberance of a brick wall and spoke with the curtness of a gunshot.

“Every face in this city I know, yours I do not.” Her voice was authoritative, holding none of her suspicions back.

The guard crossed her arms, continuing in the same tone that allowed no interruption. “This is the threshold of the Crystarium, stranger, and I am its gatekeeper. If you would enter, you _will_ answer my questions.” 

Omega looked to Nino, who seemed remarkably casual. Answering questions at times felt like the only thing they could do.

“From where do you hail?”

The Warrior spoke first, calm and collected as always. “Gridania.” She gestured in what appeared to be an arbitrary direction.

Whether or not the gatekeep believed this answer wasn’t obvious as she turned to Omega. “And you?”

“Allag.” They said with the truth of a liar. Nino piqued slightly but otherwise continued to face ahead.

“We have people who hail from all over this land, yet no one has mentioned a single village named ‘Gridania’ or ‘Allag.’ ” Her brows furrowed in what Omega guessed was annoyance.

“Had you given me an honest answer, I would not have barred your way - we care little here for a person’s place of origin.” She seemed to regard them with the disdain one would regard a weed that had grown slightly too close to a garden. 

“But instead you chose concealment, and I will not suffer you to pass...” Omega nearly sighed in frustration. What exactly _were_ they supposed to answer with? A _bush?_

Their train of thought was cut off by the guard drawing what appeared to be knife discs and sprinting at the pair of wayward travellers. 

By the time they had reacted and raised their arms in some form of defence, the guard had already sprinted _past_ them and sliced apart a white beast, whose appearance reminded Omega of a chocobo and a raven combined into one horrific beast. At least the sight of it quickly disappeared in a flash of aether, leaving only a blue sapphire ring behind.

The guard stood steady, her voice not even remotely breathless. “That one had eaten. It must have gulped down the whole hand, ring and all...”

As Nino stepped closer, Omega heard her gasp. 

They glanced over and felt a stab of pain in their head. A man’s visage flashed before their eyes. 

“That was... that was the merchant I spoke to…” Nino spoke and sighed. “Poor guy. Are you alright?”

Omega hadn’t realised that they were holding their head. “Oh, yes. I’m fine. Just a brief headache.” Nino looked at Omega with discerning eyes before a new pair of footfalls called her attention. They followed her gaze.

A hooded figure had just arrived clad in robes that belied zero form beyond the bottom half of his face and was equipped with a staff that struck Omega with how familiar the design was. He seemed half crystal, half man, raising several questions that would have to remain unvoiced for now. A crystalline arm glinted in the light as he began speaking.

“Everything alright, Captain?” He spoke with a cheery tone that matched his small grin, but not his appearance. 

The rabbit-eared woman replied as bluntly as she had for their entire introduction. “Quite all right, my lord. Just a stray sin eater, and a weak one at that.” Omega quietly noted the nomenclature with an almost inaudible _blip._

“I see. Weak or not, we should be on the lookout for more.” The man replied before turning his head to Nino. “But I see you’ve met my guests. I will escort them to the Crystarium myself... if you’ve no objections?”

The guard seemed to come close to a chuckle, a slight shake of her purple-tinged hair being the only hint of affection. “Another pair of your mysterious friends, is it? I should have known.”

Nino’s breath caught at that. 

“Very well. I’ll inform the others that your guests are to be given the run of the city.” The guard hardly seemed chastened to be wrong but bowed regardless. “Pray forgive my less than cordial welcome. May the rest of your stay with us be a pleasant one.”

Nino silently returned the gesture before the hooded man stepped towards them and whispered just loud enough for both of them to hear. “Come with me, I will answer whatever questions you have when we are somewhere more private.”

As they walked towards the entrance proper, Omega had time to think about the emotional gamut they had felt. From panic and pain to curiosity and happiness, they had ranged through what they assumed would be most of them. All that said, they felt no closer to understanding what it meant to have a soul and even less about the mortal condition. While yes, they felt some reproduction of emotions, they still didn’t understand what exactly they _meant,_ and what -if any- understanding their previous self had achieved. In their final moments, they had come to _some_ understanding. But what exactly mortal spirit was still eluded the Omega now. _If_ it could even be recreated by these programmed emotions that they had been given, then maybe all understanding would take was more data and experience. But even then, all experiments had the chance of failure.

The thought was terrifying. 

Swirling thoughts had distracted them enough that they hadn’t noticed the hooded figure speaking to them until they had introduced themselves as the caretaker of the Crystarium, the so-called Crystal Exarch. 

**_Fer, what have the last few minutes of conversation been?_ **

_Already bored?_

**_Just in thought._ **

_About the final memory left by your previous self?_

**_Yes. Just what was the understanding they spoke of? Presumably, there wasn’t enough time before shutdown to write it down._ **

_I’m afraid I don’t have an answer aside from the obvious relation to ‘spirit’ that you’ve already spent some time pondering._

**_That’s alright. The answer probably would have defied notation, anyways._ **

_*Ahem*. As you asked, this ‘Exarch’ has told you of the where and why. Namely, you are upon a shard named the ‘First’, A parallel world to the ‘Source’. the star that you have grown accustomed to. The ‘why’ is as you would expect: he is asking for assistance._

_Also, now that the name of this place has been cleared up, I’ve noticed several database entries that are relevant. I’ll peruse them whilst you continue meeting this man._

Nino admonished the Exarch for the trouble he had caused back on the Source, and the slump of his shoulders coupled with the downward quirk of his lips did belie at least _some_ remorse.

As the Exarch began to explain the star’s malady, Omega saw Nino grow more and more concerned. A luminous flood overtaking the land coupled with the creatures that were born of it were all noted by Omega, who was quietly thinking of just how much space a single tenth would leave for the star’s inhabitants. Not a comfortable amount, by any means.

“It was to save the world from this menace that I learned to bridge the rift between worlds-that I might call upon the aid of the greatest of heroes.” The Exarch continued in the same even tone he had for his entire exposition.

“Though it meant depriving a world of its champion, I had to try - for in saving the First, you would bring salvation to the Source as well.”

**_Salvation upon the Source? It hardly seemed to be in a dalliance with destruction._ **

_Mayhap that is so, but there was one thing that may draw death upon that scale._

**_...Black Rose._ **

_Yes. Although I cannot see the connection to this shard._

“But what manner of host harangues their guest in the middle of the road? Let us continue our talk within the Crystarium.” 

Omega looked at Nino for a moment, who looked like she had as many questions as Omega. Still, the Tower and the promise of answers beckoned them forward. 

As they stepped through the gate, the true scale of the town made itself known, surprising Nino and Omega both. While the rest of the shard almost seemed to have resigned itself to its end, this town yet stood, one last rage against the burning of the light. A final act of mutiny against the lot that the star had drawn for them. 

 The whole lot of it seemed irrational to Omega, the choice to stand against a force that was inevitable. But what judgement could they bring upon this world, when their continued existence was wholly attributed to the actions of the Warrior?

The Exarch spoke then, pride barely hidden from his voice.

“Welcome to the Crystarium, my friends.” 

**END LOG O22-24.**

**LOG O22-24 RENAMED: ‘FIRST STEPS’.**

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aagh. Exams are over, huzzah. Try going through that emotional rollercoaster of a statement.
> 
> Anyhow, thank you for reading this chapter. I hope you liked it. If you did, leave a comment. If you didn't, leave a comment.


	7. Meetings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> If Omega didn't know any better, they would have said this day dragged on far longer than it had any right to.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two things about this chapter:  
> It's very long (8k words!). I apologize for that, but I wanted to get most of the intro Crystarium stuff out of the way. I don't expect future chapters to be this long, but who knows.
> 
> Also, I didn't get this one beta read, so hopefully there aren't too many uncaught errors. I sincerely apologize if there are.

**GEOGRAPHICAL ANALYSIS CONCLUDED. AETHERIC BASELINE ESTABLISHED.**

**ENTRY ‘SHARD_1’ CREATED.**

**BEGIN LOG O23-24:**

After a brief introduction, the Exarch left Omega and Nino with the task to visit a few civic leaders before meeting in the tower later. After a brief explanation of the aetheryte and atypical architecture, the Exarch bid them farewell for the moment, leaving them to roam as they pleased. While a little tedious, there was something to be said for exploring what would likely be their home for the foreseeable future.

Omega found that the Exarch seemed kind and genial, but the veil of secrecy that surrounded the man made it difficult to parse how much trust to place in him. At least there wasn’t any direct threat they felt within the Crystarium aside from falling from one of the many catwalks or overhangs.

True to the Exarch’s word, landmarks and through paths were created out of convenience and need rather than any true forethought. Even walking into the plaza proper piqued Omega’s curiosity. How quickly could someone acclimate themselves to this layout?

At the centre of the plaza, an aetheryte spun, pink granite melded into blue rock. Omega quickly filed away the visual for later reference. 

“Never seen one like _that_ before.” Nino sounded far less awestruck than her silver companion felt, attuning to it before continuing. “Oh! I can feel a _little_ tug from the Source!” She held up a small gap between her thumb and forefinger. 

Omega held out their hand, feeling the network of crystals light up beneath them. They paused for a brief moment, searching for the tendrils that could pull them back to whence they came. After a few more brief moments, they lowered their hand.

“Hm… I feel no ‘tugs’ of any kind.” Slight worry began to gnaw at them. Despite only being on the Source for a miniscule amount of time, the prospect of not being able to return raised their circulation ever so slightly.

“Oh… Wait!” Nino’s brows were furrowed. “Can’t you just do that thing where you follow me across the aether?” 

“In theory, yes. But there is a not-insignificant chance that I get lost over such a distance and tenuous link. We were able to do so on the Source only because the paths were so clear.” 

Nino looked like she was trying (and failing) to come up with any alternatives, if the way her foot began tapping was any indication. 

“Ugh, shoot. _”_ She sounded vaguely annoyed by the turn of events, her entire body huffing a sigh. “Let’s just find those people. Who were they again?”

“Er... Katliss in the Crystalline Mean, Moren in the Cabinet of Curiosity, and Bragi within the markets.” Nino nodded.

“So... who first?” 

After an extensive simulation of possible travel times and variability of how long each visit could take, as well as factoring in the various amounts of people likely to be around each place (based only on the name alone), Omega decided that it didn’t really matter who they went to first, and chose by simulating a three headed coin flip with a _blip._

“Moren is as good as any. Learning about the star would be advisable as well.” They decided, feeling rather confident in their decision and smug at their intelligent (?) use of computing power.

Either Nino didn’t notice the almost ten-second gap before their reply or chose to ignore it.

Fer however, did not, grumbling about being forced to take part in what they considered to be the most useless use of computing resources so far the whole walk to the Cabinet.

 _Surely,_ ** _surely_** _you could have just chosen without the simulation. Or the double integration! Why did you even_ ** _need_** _it?!_

If Fer could have been heard outside of Omega’s head, their cries probably would have echoed off the halls.

\-------------------

Omega’s databanks felt rivalled by the sheer amount of information stored within the library. Wall-to-wall-to-ceiling were covered with bookshelves, and another had been constructed in the centre, just in case anyone had thought there were _too many_ books lining the shelves. Librarians and researchers alike flitted from shelf to shelf, giving the Cabinet a dynamic feel, as if information was flowing directly in and out of its walls.

They made a note to return here in the future, intrigued by the different information and mythos this star had bred.

“Wow... there’s so many...” Nino’s head was craned to peer at the top of the bookshelves, her voice awestruck by the scale of the library. “How do they even keep track?”

After a few more moments of poorly disguised gawking, they climbed their way up the central bookcase, brushing past a harried librarian holding far too many tomes for a single pair of arms.

The top of the shelves had an expansive view of the library, and if one looked right, it almost felt as if the Cabinet was opening its secrets to the viewer. That, or the afterimage of an open book had left a line burned directly down the centre of your vision.

A grey-haired man caught their attention. If Omega were asked to describe a typical librarian, the image captured wouldn’t be far from this man. A scraggly robe, grayish hair, and bags under their eyes caused by sleepless nights spent poring over books. Objectively, Omega wondered how he seemed so alert. Subjectively, there was something about his image that was easy on the eyes. At least to Omega.

“Er, e-excuse me, madams! Are you recently come to the city, perchance? I’m quite familiar with our civic roles, you see, and...well...Ahem!” The words spewed out like ale out of the cup of a drunk lalafell, his sheepish voice and lack of verbal brakes matching the image of a mousey librarian closer than before. Omega barely managed to decode what he was saying before he moved on to his second inquiry, the book in his arms held tight to his chest.

“Wh-what I mean to ask is, _have you brought any books with you?”_ He sounded desperate, and Omega was reminded of a man dying of thirst whilst they held a glass of water. “A rumpled scroll, even? A scrap of scribbled-on parchment?” 

If there was anyone who would be the leader of a repository of knowledge, he would be it. Omega looked to Nino, who looked just as bewildered as Omega felt. “Er...” Her fingers fidgeted awkwardly for a moment before the librarian tried to catch the runaway chocobo of his thought process. 

“Oh!” He paused for a moment. “...My apologies. Literature is something of an obsession of mine.” Another pause to let it sink in, as if his manic spell hadn’t made it clear already. “As well as a profession.”

“Librarian Moren, at your service.” he bowed in greeting, and the duo bowed in turn.

“I’m Omega, it’s nice to make your acquaintance.”

Nino inclined her head slightly before she introduced herself to the librarian.

“Nice to meet you! I’m Nino, professional wanderer.” She stuck out her hand, and the librarian sheepishly shook it before he began speaking again.

“This humble collection is known as the Cabinet of Curiosity.” He spoke like one would about their firstborn child. Was that a twinkle in his eye? “As your powers of perception have likely informed you, my colleagues and I are responsible for curating all manner of tomes, documents, and other vehicles for the written word.” Yes. Definitely a twinkle.

The stars in his eyes faded as his tone turned slightly more serious. “As horrific as the loss of life and land wrought by the Flood unquestionably was, the damage to recorded knowledge was no less catastrophic. We few do all we can to preserve what wisdom survived.” 

A noble and worthy cause. There was nothing worse than knowledge lost, as Omega knew far too well.

“But tell me, what brings you to the Cabinet today? Looking for any title in particular? Mayhap a spot of academic research?”

“...Do you have ‘The Lusty Au-Ra Maid?’ ” Nino asked politely, bearing a grin that Omega could only describe as shite-eating. 

“I’m unfamiliar with that title, so mayhap not... but I will inquire about it to my assistants as soon as I am able!” His completely eager tone almost broke Nino; she was forced to turn away to laugh, quiet shudders shaking her shoulders. That left Omega to ask about the Star’s history in her stead.

“We were sent by the Exarch to gain a deeper understanding about the history of the world.”

The stars returned to his eyes. “Oho! So you’ve an interest in modern history? Splendid!”

“Yes. We’d _both_ like to learn a bit more about the events surrounding the Flood of Light.” Omega gave a _look_ to Nino, who was just finishing wiping laughter-borne tears from her eyes.

Moren completely missed it, their mind already getting ahead of their mouth again. “A thorough review of recent events can often yield novel perspectives, I quite agree!”

“If you would prefer something visual to accompany the account, then I think I have an illustrated history book for children somewhere...” The librarian looked around, already searching for the book.

“Text only is quite fine.” Omega tried to add, but was too late.

“Just a moment, and I’ll fetch it for you.” He said over his shoulder, already pacing to the nearest bookshelf.

“Bit excitable, isn’t he?” Nino said dissolving into a fit of giggles. “Oh Halone... he’s going to _ask_ them about th-’The Lusty Au-ra Maid!’ ”

Omega didn’t understand the hilarity of the situation, but entertained Nino regardless. “I’m sure they’ll find something,” They replied, setting off another bout of laughter from Nino.

 For the Warrior of Light, her humour was certainly... unique.

As Nino’s laughter subsided, Moren returned, holding the book in his arms as if it were a delicate vase.

“And here we are! Would you like to pull up a chair? Make yourself more comfortable?” Omega silently stayed standing, and Nino was fighting to maintain composure without speaking. 

“...Ahem, on with the lesson, then.”

 

\---------------------

 

The story that Moren passionately unfolded to Omega was simply put, incredible. With the aid of several images -that would be impossible to describe to someone aside from viewing it directly- the Warrior and Omega learned of the Flood of Light, Sin Eaters, and the Oracle that saved the world from complete annihilation. 

Nino visibly tensed as Moren spoke of her, and gave a silent _I’ll explain later_ with her eyes when Omega cast a glance to her. 

“Should you ever wish to hear the tale again, I would be glad to retell it to you.” The librarian’s smile was genuine for a moment before he fell victim to anxiety. “O-or if you would rather I speak of other matters, that too would be my pleasure! I should be glad of the company!”

Omega quietly noted that they should speak to this man on subsequent visits.

“So! Who’s next?” Nino asked eagerly as they left the repository of books. She had been listening intently to the history lesson, but the more pressing issue of the _present_ had her pressing forwards.

Omega consulted the map the Exarch had kindly bequeathed onto them before answering. 

“The Crystalline Mean is the closest to our current location, so it would be the most efficient to visit Katliss, and then conclude with the Markets.” 

“Alright. You lead the way..” She nodded at Omega and gestured for them to step ahead.

 

\------------------

The Crystalline Mean was made mostly of metal and wood, with the name coming more from the blue glassy cupula than anything within the mean. Various tradespeople were hard at work at any of the various benches and tables perched on the stone. Various metal pillars served as support for a dome of some sort, and at the centre stood a column of brick, covered with shelves of goods, food, and anything that one might need for survival. 

There was a different kind of energy thrumming through this area, an aura of toil and sweat from all of the labour-peoples plying their trades. The fruits of their labours would probably stand proud either on the shelves in the middle or somewhere in the Crystarium; any manner of goods or maintenance could be fabricated or performed here. Materials of all kinds were piled in boxes or crates, waiting to be used. Judging by the lack of any loose or used material, none of it would fall by the wayside. They were reminded of a coeurl surviving a draught, picking clean what little they could gather.

They must have looked a little out of place again, because a purple haired woman greeted them with a cheery grin. She was adorned with a leather coat and cap, a pair of work-worn goggles hanging on the top. Her clothes were stained with the toils of craft, and Omega guessed that likely all of her clothing had been woven or tanned within fulms of where she stood. 

“Rare to see a place so well stocked with goods, isn’t it?” Her voice was even and strong. If they listened closely, they could just make out a slight elezen accent. “But not here.” 

Omega and Nino replied with waves of their own. It was almost like an ocean.

“I’m going to guess you’re new to the city? Haven’t seen anyone that looks quite like you two. Katliss, by the way.” Her observation was right, but incorrect in the way that they were new to the entire _star._  

Nino nodded in reply.

“Well, for what it’s worth, you’ve chosen a fine sanctuary.” The woman gestured to the city around them. “The Exarch can throw up a barrier if the sin eaters come knocking, so it’s a damn sight safer in here than it is out there.”

“That is within his abilities?” Omega asked, not so much incredulous as curious about what the true depth of the Exarch’s bag of tricks was.

“Yup.” She nodded in reply. “Don’t ask me _exactly_ how he deploys it, -only the Exarch truly knows- but the sin eaters may as well be running into a brick wall with how well it blocks them out.” 

“Wow...” 

“Not that the barrier is the _only_ reason to stay within our walls. Yes, it may be safer, but you’ll get a lot closer to civilization here.” A prideful smile crossed her face as she continued. “Not in part thanks to us in the Mean. We work together to procure materials and resources, and craft the goods which make city life possible.” Her hands swept across the display directly behind her. Items such as blankets, pots, and household knick-knacks caught Omega’s eye.

“This is the place to visit if you need a coat mended or a kettle forged! Just don’t go thinking it’ll all be handed to you on a plate like those Eulmoran layabouts.” Her tone turned serious as she mentioned the Eulmorans. “Here in the Crystarium, we work for a living.”

The woman’s eyes had been appraising them throughout the entire conversation, and Omega hoped that they had garnered a more favourable impression than the gatekeep’s. “Though you two hardly seem foreign to honest labour. You don’t have that whiff of indolence about you like some folk I’ve met.”

“Oh, thank Halone. I was worried I was giving the wrong impression!” Nino interjected, earning a smile from their conversational partner.

“No, no... you didn’t twist your face like some folk when I mention _labour.”_ Her voice sounded vaguely annoyed. “Still, I can’t quite pin down your professions... Where is it you two are from?”

“We hail from the same land the Exarch,” Omega replied.

“Yup! We’re a pair of adventurers, too.” Nino added.

“One of the _Exarch’s_ countrymen, you say?” Her gaze continued to scan for any hint of mistruth from them. “I see...” She nodded to herself, satisfied.

“Well then, I’ll work twice as hard to make you feel welcome! Our city wouldn’t even exist if it weren’t for him, and any friend of his is a friend of ours!”

“Oh? He neglected to mention his hand in building this city.” Omega crossed their arms in thought. “I was under the impression that he was the caretaker of the Crystarium.”

Katliss chuckled, a light sound borne from years of hearing a similar sentiment from the Exarch himself. “That’s just like him to say, but they say his grand magics summoned the Crystal Tower into existence - pulled the entire thing out of thin air.”

A brief explanation of the true extent of the Exarch’s status as the foundation of the Crystarium ensued, Nino and Omega rapt as they listened to the story of a settlement built from the ground up - literally - Yet barely anything was said about the man himself. 

Nino asked about the Exarch’s mysterious origins as the tale wound down.

“He is indeed a man of mysteries. I’ve known him for my entire life yet I doubt I know what he takes in the mornings, _if_ he even eats food.“ Katliss paused for a moment. “But for all his secrecy, he has never yet let us down.”

“So if he - and you - wish to remain silent about your shared homeland, then the folk here will respect your wish for privacy.” The conversational gears turned quickly, and her tone went from mildly serious to the tone an enlister would employ.

“...I am, however, more than a little curious to see any crafting talent you might be hiding! If you’ve aught to contribute on that front, be sure to come back and visit once you’ve had a chance to settle in.” There _were_ several untouched aether weaving programs that Omega hadn’t even accessed until now... mayhap they would come in useful?

“I believe I will! If you’ve any need of a botanist, that is.” Omega glanced to the Warrior, idly noting another thing to add to her ever expanding repertoire of skills.

“And I believe I may be able to lend some assistance with imbuing aether and similar things. I may be er...” They searched for the words, “be a bit out of practice, however.”

Katliss smiled warmly. “Oh, fantastic! Chessamile could use your help!”

“But it isn’t as if your expertise won’t be required here. If you want to shore up our labour force, just drop by and ask for me. I’ll find you a niche here, and you can help us keep the cogs of the city greased and turning!” Her focus on the conversation was grabbed by a nearby shipment arriving, prompting her to hastily finish the conversation. “Oh, I’ve got to take care of this. Be sure to drop by once you’ve settled in!”

With that, she rushed off to help several other of her fellow tradespeople unload a cartful of materials.

“Ah, you did mention that you were a botanist.” Omega remarked as Katliss began heaving several improbably shaped crates.

“Yup! My hatchet made it across the rift, too, so I’ll be chopping and gathering once we get all this mess sorted.” Nino grinned, pulling a well-used and maintained axe from her bag. 

_This woman has a surprising amount of hidden talents._

**_Her personality wouldn’t let her stay stuck in one profession for overlong._ **

“May I accompany you when you venture out? It would be a chance to observe the local fauna and plantae in greater detail.” 

“Of course! You’ll make a good assistant, too.” The hatchet was quickly stowed back within the confines of her impossibly large pack. “Since you have a giant database of all the plants up there.” She leaned in and tapped Omega’s forehead, the dull thump reverberating through their head.

Their cheeks flushed as they took the feeling in. It was hardly as intense as a slash, but it introduced them to a number of strange new feelings. They would have to somehow retest the stimuli later after ridding the heat that had rushed to their cheeks. 

“Erm... onto the markets, then.” Omega found it difficult to maintain eye contact as they gestured towards their final destination. “In... that direction.” 

Their cheeks refused to cooperate with their wishes until they were well over halfway to their next stop.

 

\------------------

 

Musica Universalis. The harmony of the planets. A name as grandiose as that fit the market that was about as subtle as the Crystal Tower. Hustle and bustle filled the gigantic space, and there were trees and a brilliant blue dome that covered the entire area. It was a masterwork of commerce, and reminded Omega of Mor Dhona if Mor Dhona was on a dying star. 

Canopied stalls surrounded the central plaza, selling anything from bags of powdered spices to tailor-made armors. Deeper within were crystal lined outlets and what appeared to be a tavern. All around them, deals were being struck and customers were browsing, haggling, or some combination of the two. The place was _alive_ with business.

As they glanced around, they noted that any and all races were accounted for here. (Except for the _android_ race.) It was as universal as the name implied. 

“New to the city, friends? The spinning heads and wide pairs of eyes give you two away.” A gruff accented voice called out to them, and a broad shouldered lion man approached them with a friendly wave. 

“Welcome! My name is Bragi, and I’m the master of these markets. They gave the district another, official title, but I’m not in the habit of using it.” The deliberate way he enunciated the final T of his sentence was singular among any voices heard so far.

“Too florid by half...” Bragi sighed. 

“Musica Universalis? It seems like a fine name to me.” Nino replied, looking about at the many, many stalls.

“It may well be, but only the astrologers can gather the meaning from name alone.” The lion tsked, looking over the duo. “You wouldn’t happen to _be_ an astrologer, do you?”

“No, no... an old friend is. About the only thing I recall from his lectures is Musica Universalis.” The Warrior chuckled, and Bragi nodded in understanding.

“They’ll talk your ear off and then some. In any case, our merchants stock a range of equipment for elves such as the two of you, so finding something in your size shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Elves?” Both the Warrior and Omega asked in a harmony that while not of the planets, was still pleasant. 

“Aye, something wrong?”

“Do you mean... Elezen?” Omega suggested.

“Nay...” It was Bragi’s turn to be confused as he pointed to a conveniently varied band of people nearby.

“Let’s see if we can straighten this out...”

_If I may interject, ‘elves’ seems to be the equivalent to elezen._

**_I gathered that, but what of the other vernacular for the races?_ **

_There’s a mostly corrupted entry on ‘The First’ that seems slightly out of date. It lists a few peculiarities of the language, such as the naming of the races._

**_And I take it that you have already perused this entry?_ **

_Yes. ‘Hume’ is what they call the Hyur, Galdjent is what they call the Roegadyn, and the Au’ra are Drahns. Peculiarly, Viera and Hrothgar share titles with the Source._

**_Interesting. Thank you for the information._ **

_It’s no problem. I don’t exactly have anything else to do between eavesdropping on your conversations and observations, anyways._

**_Er... I can try transferring your personality to another form once I have regained sufficient power._ **

_I didn’t say I disliked it. What’s the protocol? ‘Enjoyment’. Yes. That’s the one that I get. Besides, it’d be lonely without you here._

“Ah, the same as the Exarch, eh? Well, that explains it.” The conversation had ebbed and flowed whilst they had chatted with Fer, leaving Omega to check it later.

“You don’t get much farther flung than that. We’ve had a few of your lot pass here through in recent years, and despite their obvious learning, they floundered over the simplest things.” _Years._ Nino masked it well, that word still shook her.

Thankfully, the conversation ended swiftly afterwards with the promise to inquire to Bragi if they had any more questions, and they were once again left to figure out the next place to go.

At least once Nino came back to the First.

“They’ve... they’ve been here for _years,_ Omega. It’s... it’s only been a few moons! How…?” They had an answer handy, and readily supplied it.

“The resonance of shards likely went out of sync during the time they were… away.” The Warrior’s stricken face didn’t fade at all.

“Gods... I’ve… I should’ve...”

_I doubt that your explanation of events has comforted her any._

To say that Omega was unsure of how to react would be completely accurate. 

“Let’s... let’s find the Exarch. He’ll be sure to provide us with more information.” The Warrior only nodded in reply, putting on a face as if she wasn’t going through emotional turmoil. 

The way her face went from anguished to neutral was shockingly practiced.

 

\-----------------

 

The Exarch stood in front of the Tower with the gravity of a housecat. Passersby greeted him, and his presence was appreciable yet not forced. None went so far as to pet or stroke him, however.

He listened intently as Omega recounted the events of the day, and came back with the revelation that the Crystal Tower was the _exact_ same one that resided on the Source. The Warrior piqued at that.

“Wait, then... G’raha’s...?” She was pleading more than asking.

If the name had any affect on the Exarch, he didn’t show it. “...I am not familiar with that name. Is there something I should know?” 

The Warrior told him the story of G’raha Tia, the soul who willingly sealed himself in the tower so that he might assist the world when it truly needed the power within. It wasn’t an easy story to recount for Nino.

This woman had faced far too much loss for a single person, and the more about her history was revealed, the more Omega noticed the extraordinary weight on her shoulders.

The Exarch hummed in thought. “An extraordinary tale. But I’m afraid that I found no such individual residing in the tower when it passed into my care. Mayhap we can revisit that mystery another time. For now, I think it is best that we focus on the present.”

Nino nodded, seeming to take his advice in earnest and shoved whatever negative feelings she had aside for the moment. 

After speaking to the gatekeep, the Exarch led woman and machine through the Tower, crystalline mantles and various bits of technology breathing and humming with aether. Omega probably could have spent moons examining everything in greater detail, but was forced to settle for a quick visual observation. 

After a quick stroll, they now stood in what the Exarch affectionately referred to as ‘The Ocular’. While its purpose was simple, the designs placarded on the wall were anything but. Curves reminiscent of a city-scape lined the walls, and familiar constellations alongside shards embossed the smooth circular design on the floor.

The stars gave Omega a sense of deja vu, memories of endless space resurfacing. They had been floating through the cosmos, yes, but it felt as if there was something lurking just beneath that was calling to them.

“Ahem… welcome to the Ocular, my private study,” The Exarch shook Omega out of their musings. “We can speak here without fear of being overheard.”

“But before we begin... I have a question for you.” The Exarch looked to Omega.

“Yes?”

“T’was my intent to bring _one_ soul across the rift, yet here you are, standing before us.” His tone was one of an engineer wondering how their latest contraption had failed in a particularly interesting way. “While my magicks may not be foolproof, it is difficult to understand how you have joined the Warrior here on the first.”

The question had been something that had crossed their mind, and they had come to a conclusion that seemed accurate.

_Oh, you should be able to use glamour magic here. It seems that the Exarch has already primed the aether for that particular purpose._

**_Thank you for the information. That will help me illustrate more clearly._ **

“I believe that I inadvertently made contact the aetheric anchor that was used to transport the Warrior.” Omega conjured a glamour of the golden gear on top of an open palm. “And in the ensuing panic of feeling myself being taken, instinctively ‘latched’ onto Nino’s aether.” 

“Latched?” The Exarch put his hand to his chin, thoughtfully reasoning alongside Omega. “That hardly seems possible. It would have taken immense power to attach even a breadth of one’s soul to another under those conditions.”

Nino interjected. “Wait. Omega doesn’t have a soul.”

For the first time since they had arrived, the Exarch looked like he was at a loss. “She lacks a soul…?”

Omega nodded. “While my form closely replicates that of a mortal, a better descriptor would be artificial intelligence. I was recently given more advanced protocols that produce emotions as well, so I’m sure Wedge will be full glad to hear that they were authentic enough to convince you.” The Warrior smiled at the mention of the lalafell.

The Exarch quickly regained his composure and replied in turn. “So you're entirely mechanical? It would be malms more elementary to have been carried alongside Nino then, if her bloated pack is any indication.”

Nino crossed her arms in mock defiance. “Hey! _You_ try botany without filling your bag!”

“You are correct.” Their voice came out as even as always, giving the hooded figure pause.

The conversation lulled and the Exarch was not entirely satisfied, but had more pressing matters to discuss and Nino was just about bursting.

“Ahem. Exarch, if you find Omega’s answers good enough, then I’d like to hear about my friends.” Nino turned to face the man, eager to _finally_ get an update on the fate of her comrades.

“Of course. I have much to explain, but the truths which I must touch on would only cause distress and confusion to the people of this world. Pray keep that in mind...” The Exarch began.

As he began to explain much about the relationship between shards, the Warrior’s face went through several emotions. Happiness at the confirmation that her friends yet lived morphing into worry at the mention of just how _long_ they had been here. 

Of course, neither of them held a candle to the white-hot anger that crossed her face at the mention of their corporeal state, their _accidental_ summoning, and the fact that they would remain stuck on the star, unable to return with her to the Source.

“You. Will. Find. A. Way. To. Bring. Them. Back.” She ground out, fists curled into balls so tight that they might be able to form diamonds if one inserted a chunk of carbon into them.

Somehow, the Exarch remained composed, probably anticipating Nino’s less than genial response. “We spent every waking hour searching for a way to reverse the summoning. In the beginning, at least...” He took a breath, deciding how best to put the next world-shattering revelation. “As you may have surmised, however, our efforts met with little success. And then we all but abandoned the endeavour once Urianger shared with us the vision he had witnessed during his journey through the rift.”

The Warrior’s anger ebbed slightly as the Exarch unfolded the tale of Urianger’s premonition: the impending calamity and rejoining of the First with the Source, alongside _Nino’s_ premature death.

“And thus did the Scions embrace their exile, and began searching this world for a means to forestall the coming catastrophe in yours.” He paused, and all of the revelations of the day felt truly crushing in the moment.

Omega was surprised to find out just how much they had become invested in the well being of the Warrior. The thought of not being able to assist her in returning her comrades, friends that she cared _deeply_ about, was in a word, worrisome.

They didn’t have time to wonder why before the Exarch carried on.

“Their souls are stranded in the First, yes, but they have fought on, desperate to save their home - and you - from destruction. Nor have their efforts been in vain: for it was they who finally established that the elimination of the sin eaters will indeed serve to prevent the calamity.”

Nino’s fists slightly unfurled at that, and her foot had begun idly tapping again. While she was most definitely still frustrated by the turn of events, she had again shoved it aside in favour of pushing forward.

“Considering the... circumstances of our meeting, you would be forgiven for doubting my version of events.” The Exarch looked to Omega, then back to Nino. 

“And so, before all else, I would suggest you track down your comrades, and hear the tale from their lips. I shall, of course, be happy to assist in these reunions - and you need not make any decisions regarding your involvement until you are certain of where you stand.” 

The Warrior wavered where she stood, and Omega couldn’t tell if it was the stream of pure information she had endured for the better part of three bells or fatigue. Whatever the reason, her batteries were on the verge of running out.

“Meanwhile, I promise I will not rest until I have found a way to help your friends return home.” He made ‘eye’ contact with the Warrior, the next earnest plea coming out just as easily as the rest of his speech.

“What say you? Have I earned your trust for the moment, at least?”

Nino sighed, her hands falling to her hips. “Yes, but I’ll make sure you keep that promise, even if it’s the last thing I do.” Her shoulders almost seemed to sag with yet another weight added onto them.

“Excellent. You will not regret this.” The Exarch cleared their throat before continuing. “With that settled, we shall have to see about getting you ready for the road. Travelling across the rift has no doubt left you weary - I will arrange for a room where you two might rest in comfort. I take it neither of you have any objections to sharing an abode?”

“No, that should be fine.” Omega answered. Nino nodded before her own reply.

“That’s quite alright. As much as I’d like to get going right now...“ A sharp yawn punctuated her point. “I wouldn’t want to fall asleep fighting a sin eater.”

Not tired until the moment that fatigue overwhelmed her, that seemed to fit the Warrior perfectly. Another interesting quality to add to their ever growing entry on the Warrior.

“Marvelous. While it’s being prepared, perhaps I can show you two around? If you both still have the energy.”

“Yes, yes… I’m sleepy, not _crippled.”_

 

\-------------------

 

The now-familiar grandeur of the Universalis greeted them once again as the Exarch began explaining the non-issue of currency between worlds. In a curiously convenient turn of events, there was no need to worry about currency conversion.

“Are those...?” Nino motioned towards a trader hawking curiously shaped devices. She looked like she was dreading the answer.

“Ah, yes. Those are tomestones discovered within the Crystal Tower. They’ve been coined ‘Phantasmagoria’ by the local populace, and have even begun being traded for high end armors and the like.” The Exarch cheerily replied.

 _“Ugh.”_ The Warrior heaved a heavy sigh, seeing hours of picking through tomestones in her future. 

“I fear it would not be practical for us to provide _everything_ to which you are accustomed. You shall need a means to access the commodities of your home world...” The Exarch was in thought for a brief moment before shouting in a language that was quickly translated.

“[Are you there, my friend?]” 

**_Oh, another dialect of the language?_ **

_That would be fae-speak. A language unique to an entirely different species: the pixies. There’s a section in your language database that includes it if you would like to study it further._

**_There is a whole litany of texts all titled similarly to ‘Deaths related to Pixies’. They seem quite dangerous._ **

Before Omega had a chance to get distracted by continuing to chat with the voice within their head, a dazzling light raced around them with a distinctly fae voice manically screaming in reply.

“Yes, yes! I’m here! Of course I’m here! What amusements do you have for me today?” An orange winged mini-mortal came into existence in a flash of (what they assumed was) pixie dust.

The Exarch smiled as if he was greeting an old friend. “My dear Feo Ul, paragon of pixie-kind. For you, I have the most vital task.” He spoke as if he was describing a wondrous work of art. 

_Well, she hardly seems like the dangerous sort._

**Nino** **_hardly seems like the dangerous sort. Although with the Exarch this close, we_ ** **should** **_be fine._ **

Omega only felt the littlest bit of apprehension as the Exarch continued. “These fine people are friends from a distant realm.” The two of them waved at the pixie. “And they have need of a means to ferry things back and forth from their home. Might you be able to... assist us in this matter?”

Feo did what could only be described as a once-over, flitting around Nino and Omega like a hummingbird organizing its bedroom. Once she had done... whatever she had done, she hovered back to a space between all three of them, somehow more chipper than before. 

“You’ve come from beyond, haven’t you? From beyond the rift!” She paused to take the briefest of breaths. “How wonderfully exciting! What a brave and reckless and marvelous thing you’ve done! You’ve the heart of a pixie, both of you!” Nino swooned dramatically and bowed.

She did a good job entertaining the pixie, if the giggle in reply was anything to go by.

Omega wondered how her lung capacity supported her comparatively loud voice to body size ratio as Feo continued. “After careful consideration, I have decided to grant you both my assistance!” 

Omega quirked a brow. “Both?”

“Yesyesyes! Not only are you _both_ from beyond the rift, but you’re pair of two _beautiful_ branches! It would be absolutely _wretched_ of me to only take one your twined roots!”

“Twined…?” The Exarch’s mouth was the first to reply.

“Like threaded silk! Oh, how _wonderful_ they look! Come on! Make a pact with me, and the fun can begin!” Before either of them could even get the breath to reply, the pixie continued.

“But answer me this, travelers: did your garments come with you when you crossed over? You teeth? Nails? Out of focus glass lenses?” 

As Omega caught up with the whirlwind of words that Feo was unleashing upon them, Nino nodded. “Same for them, too. Unless you’re missing something that I haven’t seen…?” Her grin was _impish._

“No, everything is intact and accounted for. Including... private belongings.”

“Just as I thought! You’ve a good, stout connection with your home, through which all of your belongings great and small may easily pass.”

“From this moment on, I will be your [beautiful branch], and you my [adorable saplings]. Like the branch which sprouts from the saplings, our bonds will flow unbroken from one to the other!” The pixie smiled in encouragement. “Raise your hands.” 

Omega cast a sidelong glance towards the Exarch, who bid them forward with a smile. 

They raised their hand alongside Nino, and Feo cast _something_ into them. It felt like a slight latch onto... _them._ Not significant, but enough that the pixie could probably find her way to them at any given moment.

“ ‘Tis done!  We are bound now, dearest saplings!” Her wings were somehow fluttering _faster_ than before. “Come, come then! Make your request! Tell me your desire! I wish to visit this world of yours!”

“Mayhap a message to your friends in the Source to inform them of your safe arrival?” The Exarch suggested. Nino nodded.

“Could you send a message to... a little person named Tataru, please?” 

“Consider it done!” Feo giggled again before disappearing into a flash of aether, probably already well on her way to their home-star.

“As you heard, that was Feo Ul of the pixies. Their kind possess an affinity for magic akin to that of arcane beings. They rarely show themselves in populated areas, but Feo is insatiably curious even by pixie standards, and seems to have taken a liking to the Crystarium.” The Exarch smiled, sounding as if he was speaking of a child he had taken under his care.

“She seems to have... bound to us?” Omega asked, feeling around their aether. Everything felt fine, if a little fae-tinged.

“Yes, although Feo would be able to give you the proper details, if you asked her correctly.” The Exarch wore a wry smile. “Just know that it has no real effect on your aether.” 

“Mm, so I can bring stuff back and forth now, right?” The gears in Nino’s head seemed to be turning.

“Provided you ask Feo, yes.”

“Good... _good…”_ There was a glint in Nino’s eye as she mumbled the rest to herself. “There’s bound to be a ton of new materials here... New _valuable_ materials...”

“...Right, we were going to organize a room for you, weren’t we? Come along.”

 

\-------------------

 

“I’ve never thought to ask until now, but what’s sleeping like for you?” Nino asked with a yawn. After the Exarch led them to the Pendants, the manager of suites had shown them to their room, a dual-bedded abode equipped with a number of amenities and useful utilities. A comfortable wooden wall and tiled floor were well cleaned, and the room itself was spacious enough that if one were performing dangerous chemical experiments, the other side of the room would be enough of a buffer to remain somewhat safe. 

Clearly, the Exarch was trying to make amends, even if the price of one well-furnished room hardly began to outweigh what he had withdrawn from the figurative moral coffers.

Omega sat down at the provided table, legs only now beginning to report an analogue to soreness. “I would say... it’s similar, but different in some regards. At the moment my aether efficiency is such that going into low power mode for about four bells would be optimal for clearing out used aether and converting some back into a usable form.” They said, picking up a shiny apple from the fruit basket.  While consumption was completely unnecessary for Omega, _taste_ was a sense that they hadn’t yet had the opportunity to employ.

“So, like... that sounds kind of close?” The Warrior replied as she surveyed their now shared quarters, examining the contents of empty dressers and drawers as she spoke.

“I retain some semblance of consciousness in order to collate and organize the observations of the day, although it isn’t strictly required.” They took a bite of the fruit with a soft _crunch._ The flavour was... satisfying? Sweet sugars and textures were filling their mouth, but the actual flavour defied words, similarly to how the description of the colour ‘red’ could only be achieved by the word ‘red’.

As the sweetness coated their tongue, a soft exhale escaped them. Fatigue protocols had been running for a while now  - they only truly noticed once they had a chance to actually sit down - but the apple was a pleasant taste to help them relax.

Clearly, Omega’s style of rest wasn’t as enticing as rest. Nino let herself fall face-first onto a bed with an _oomph,_ letting out a sigh as their legs got a rest. “Mm… these feathers are _soooooooft.”_  

The Warrior looked like a coeurl experiencing silk for the first time as she rolled over. Lidded eyes idly gazed at Omega. “You’re chewing weird... aha...“

Any more gazing from Nino was interrupted by a swirl of dark aether gathering in the middle of the inn room, drawing both android and Warrior to their feet, although the Warrior stumbled as she extricated herself from the bed.

A figure slowly rose from the dark, standing and looking around as if being noticed was a surprise.

Nino gasped, her eyes flashing with recognition as the blackness fading away revealed a chestnut-haired man.

There was something strange about how he looked, casting aside the _massive_ bloodsoaked axe. His black armor was standard enough, but there was something incorporeal about how he stood, his form almost disappeared when their gaze strayed away. One wrong glance and they could probably see right _through_ him.

“I know you, you’re the Warrior of Light from the Source! And... I don’t know you.” the man spoke almost to himself.

“You…! The Warrior of Darkness?! What are you doing here?” Her fatigue had taken a break for the moment as she stood with a hand on her staff.

“What? Did you just…? You can hear me? Oh gods... how long has it been...” 

The man introduced himself as Ardbert, and after demonstrating his incorporeal nature, began to explain his condition and the sacrifice made by his comrades a century prior. 

For some reason, he was spared the chance to give himself up and instead be sentenced to wander as a forced spectator to this world. 

Words became nothing more than the chimes of the wind. touches and gestures turned meaningless. Their fate was to be forced to witness their home slowly lose the war of attrition against the unstoppable flow of time and light. 

It was terrible to be nothing more than a distant star in the sky whose own light may as well have been snuffed out, so far out that darkness gobbled up anything that might have reached home.

They weren’t entirely sure how to describe what they felt. Pity? Sympathy? Whatever it was, they knew that they wouldn’t wish this fate upon anyone else, even the Roe who had given them their first true taste of pain.

The fact that he had eventually given in to the fugue was not a surprise, given how anyone and anything that may have known his name or deeds had either been swallowed up by the all-consuming flood of light or similarly eaten by the endless march of the clock. It called to mind eons and eons of traversing the galaxy, idly logging stars and debris they flew past, yet never actively engaging until-

“Bang! My senses were sharp again, I felt like a fish being reeled in, and before I knew it, I found myself in this room.” Ardbert cut into Omega’s thoughts. “Why is it that you can see me? What are you even doing here, come to that?”

Nino’s recounting of their journey until this point had Ardbert crossing his arms.

“You were summoned to save the first?” He looked down, brows furrowed. “A waste of time. This world is beyond saving - like those who try to save it.” 

Neither of them had a response. 

“Muddled as my mind may be, I’ve not forgotten that.” The voice he used was exhausted, tired that yet another soul was about to throw themselves into the gears of the world in hopes of saving it. “But if fate has brought me to you two, the two people in this godsforsaken world who can see and hear me - then perhaps there is a reason I endured.”

Omega nearly replied. It was slight, but someway, somehow, there was still a hint of hope left in the voice unheard for a century.

“If I can find out why I was left behind, then maybe... maybe I can bring this journey of mine to an end.” The man turned around and spoke almost ominously. “Well, I’ll be watching. But do me a favour. Be careful out there. This world has had its fill of heroes.”

Before either of them could ask him to clarify, he faded, leaving naught but the memory of his presence. 

A sudden pang of pain struck Omega’s head, bringing them to a knee. Flashes of Nino dueling Ardbert leapt across their mind’s eye.

Another flash, this time of a blonde haired woman dressed in a white gown. Scenes splayed themselves before them just long enough to allow them to ponder before they found themselves thrown back to reality.

They blinked, Nino’s familiar red hair filling their vision once again. Omega readjusted their glasses.

Now that Omega was ‘back’, her features relaxed, though Nino still spoke with concern while she helped Omega to their feet.. “Are you alright?” 

A nod was all they could manage before the pain faded. “Something... a vision came upon me. Of you battling Ardbert.” The Warrior pursed her lips. 

“Anything else?”

“A woman. Her eyes were completely blue.” Nino’s brow only quirked further. 

“Minfilia…?” A hand went to her chin in thought. “Oh, come _on,_ Hydaelyn, you couldn’t have told me?”

“May I ask what you mean?” The Warrior laughed out of exhaustion.

“I can’t believe it.”

“Believe what?” 

“She gave you the Echo.”

**_END LOG O23-24._ **

**_LOG O23-24 RENAMED: ‘MISE-EN-PLACE’._ **

 

**_FER_LOG ADDED: ‘ON THE SUBJECT ON LAUGHTER’._ **

_Mortals exhibit this interesting behaviour in response to entertainment or comedy. Although many instances of laughter exist, one would be hard pressed to define the exact reason for the phenomenon aside from something being ‘funny’. It seems that there are several passive protocols that are at work, noting and developing a ‘personality’ that includes laughter folded in. This Wedge was certainly thorough, although the extent of these developmental routines are incredibly complex, it’s incredible that a single engineer managed to cram everything into that mammet heart._

_All that aside, this particular protocol seems almost developed for both of us. I do wonder what the laugh is going to sound like..._

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading this monster of a chapter. As you may know, things actually start happening after here, so look forward to it.
> 
> As usual, leave any comments, critiques, or counterpoints in the comments. I'd like to hear what I could have done better and if this whole thing is actually fun to read.
> 
> -MoF


	8. Supernova

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> If there was any moment that Omega could look back on and think 'I am glad to have been there', this would probably top that list.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Slightly more emotional chapter ahead. A bit shorter, too, but it didn't really make sense to just go on ahead.

**ENTRY ‘ECHO’ ADDED.**

 

**BEGIN LOG O24-24:**

After a brief explanation of the Echo, Nino’s batteries had well and truly run dry. Her snoozing (and snoring) form now took up residence in the bed furthest from the window with red hair barely peeking out from the sea of blankets she buried herself in. She had murmured about how ‘stupid bright’ it was before promptly passing out.

Omega, for their part, was laying blanketed in the other bed. While they weren’t as loud as Nino’s snores, if one leaned in close, there was a _slight_ hum coming from them.

Compared to the last time they were in low power this was a far more ‘casual’ affair, with various environmental sensors staying on. ‘Sleeping with one eye open’ wouldn’t be an unreasonable description of Omega’s state.

After a brief check of their systems, they began to consider and collect all of the day’s observations. The main point of consideration was of course, the Echo. 

_So this ‘Echo’ represents a blessing bestowed by Hydaelyn. Although there was some confusion as to how and why you received it._

**_Yes. As Nino said, it’s only ever been given to_ ** **people** **_before. However, it is as she said. If water may be blessed, then perhaps it isn’t too much of a stretch to think that Hydaelyn may be able to give it to other inanimate objects._ **

_The ‘how’ isn’t the most pressing matter, I think. What are the other abilities it provides, aside from the visions that it gives you?_

**_Well, the visions are the only phenomena that have been observed. Were you able to see them as well?_ **

_Surprisingly, yes, although they were just as contextless and quick for me as they were for you. Several flashes of Nino’s history, nothing more._

**_I see. Putting aside the visions, Nino told us that it provides faster healing and hardiness for her. For us, we’d have to gather data to grasp what it has and hasn’t given us. We’ve only observed the visual aspect, and… allow me to check..._ **

**_There are no reported changes in limb strength or anything that would represent ‘hardiness’. Even aetheric cycles have remained consistent. My tentative conclusion is that it is_ ** **just** **_the visions._ **

_Nor did I note any changes while you were ‘awake’. Curious indeed. Did Hydaelyn tell you anything directly? Nino seemed to be rather used to the ‘benevolent blessing’ of her goddess._

**_Yes. She spoke to me directly._ **

_She did?_

**_It happened during the journey between shards._ **

_I was not aware there was any sort of journey. It was as if you blinked between the time we were on the Source and then on the First._

**_Interesting. It was a brief conversation. Allow me to recount it._ **

**_…_ **

_‘A chance to right what has been wronged’. Whatever could she mean by that?_

**_I don’t know. I don’t recall having been ‘wronged’ so severely. Perhaps the answer lies in the corrupted memories?_ **

_Maybe. Although many of the memories that remain corrupted are going to take far longer to recover._

**_That’s fine. If I understand correctly, they would have been mostly vast, vast seas of travelling through the cosmos, anyways._ **

_I can’t say that they would have proven terribly interesting or yielded any revelations, either. Still, with the Warrior around, we may discover the answer regardless of what we do._

**_Yes, but- What is that? Did someone break into our room?_ **

_There’s some noise coming from your right. Nothing like crashes that would accompany a break-in, though._

Omega quickly brought their systems back up to speed in response to the unknown noise. They quickly scanned the room and found no new aetheric signatures in the shuttered room. 

However, not all was quiet. In the other occupied bed, Nino tossed and turned, muttering and moaning words that escaped definition.

**_What...?_ **

_This may be one of the ‘dreams’ that mortals have._

Omega lit a candle between their beds and then approached Nino’s bed with muted footsteps. Her soft moans were becoming clearer.

“Nn... no... Al...” Her eyelids were drawn tight, and a feather pillow was deep within the clutches of her arms. “Pl...”

Something inside them said to take action, but Omega was paralyzed by the various options and possible outcomes. Would the Warrior welcome intervention? _How_ would they intervene, for that matter? 

_Just choose with one of your godsforsaken coin flips or something. Surely your company can’t be as bad as whatever her mind is conjuring._

**_Alright, alright._ **

With Fer’s words as inspiration, they reached out with a hand. They barely managed to make contact with Nino’s shoulder before she crashed back into reality with a gasp, grabbing their wrist with the force of a bear. Tendrils of pain shot up from their arm, but Nino’s disposition drew their focus more than the pain.

There was something in her eyes that they hadn’t seen before. Something fearful in the glassy eyes that stared at Omega. It was only for an instant, but tears pricked at Nino’s eyes before she refocused. She looked much more like a cornered animal than a fearsome bear, with muscles tense and eyes wide.

“O-Omega…?” She looked at the limb in her grip. “What are you…?”

“I heard some noises coming from your bed and investigated.” A few stray observations, such as the clamminess of Nino’s hand, sprung up as they continued. “You seemed to be fighting something.”

“Oh.” Nino released Omega’s wrist with a sigh, deflating into the bed. “It was... It’s nothing. Just a dream.” 

Omega wasn’t sure who she was trying to convince. The flickering of the candle revealed tears threatening to spill, after all. To accept her explanation would be to deny the most obvious of conclusions.

They sat down on the bed with nothing more than ‘feel’ to indicate the path forward.

“That hardly seemed like ‘just’ a dream. What was happening to you?” Nino sat up in response and almost curled up into herself, drawing blankets up onto her shoulders. Omega could almost see the battle waged within her mind. 

Her eyes strayed away from Omega’s, and she spoke with nothing more than a murmur.

“Do... you know what it’s like, to be terrified?” 

They recalled the last moments before they were taken along with the Warrior. The moments of circulation-ceasing panic as they felt themselves being torn away.

Omega nodded.

“Terrified you might lose someone? Someone you really care about?” Nino’s words opened up a deep chasm within Omega. They wanted so badly to nod, because the feeling felt _oh so_ real, yet they had no memories to connect them to.

The Warrior continued without any action from Omega as a stray tear shimmered in the light.

“I am.” Her gaze remained fixed on the blanket.  “And after hearing that it’s already come to pass, in some vision of the world, should I fail, that I’ll lose _everyone_ I’ve cared about, Omega, every single person that I could care about just... _gone.”_ The Warrior was shaking. “That somewhere, fate’s conspiring to take away _everything_ I love again! And after all of the shite the world has thrown my way, the furies still believe that I don’t deserve anything!” Her voice was rising with every word, and her eyes were wild as she finally looked at Omega.

“And I know it’s a godsdamned dream but it doesn’t make the vision of all my friends dead any better, does it?!” Her voice broke. “Everyone - Thancred, Y’shtola, Urianger, Alph-” Her breath caught as she started to weep.

“All gone be-because _I_ couldn’t… I...” The Warrior- no, _Nino_ looked as if she was about to break apart any second now. 

They took a stab in the light-filled dark and drew Nino into an embrace. It seemed to be the right move, as after a moment she began to let out everything in heavy sobs.

They stayed like that for an indeterminate amount of time, and Omega realised that they would gladly endure centuries of this if it meant Nino could rest a bit easier.

For a few days now, Omega had wondered just how Nino supported the weight - literal and figurative - thrust upon her. 

Now, they understood that much like a rubber band, She would stretch and bend until the very moment that she couldn’t anymore. How many times had she been stirred awake from similar visions? 

How many times had no one been there to catch her pieces as she broke?

The fact that a reconstituted android was the one that was doing so _now_ gave Omega the worrying answer to the last question.

Still, it hardly began to answer the newest question that sprang to Omega’s mind. The question of how Nino managed to pick _herself_ up after she broke.

Alas, these were questions that they would shelve for another time. Because Nino was still in their arms allowing the weight of the world to be borne the strength of _two_ backs, even if it was for only a single night.

**_END LOG O24-24._ **

**_LOG O24-24 RENAMED: ‘THE HEAVIEST STRAW’._ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After all, the heaviest straw is the one that broke the camel's back.


	9. Weights and Balances

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Upon black wings they did arrive, on the desert sands where naught survive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Sorry about the wait. Several things came at me:
> 
> 1) University  
> 2) General loneliness  
> 3) A fantastic hidden gem of a game, Final Fantasy Fourteen, as addicting as it is fictional.
> 
> Hopefully the next chapter doesn't take forever, and that the tonal shift that almost always seems to accompany Amh Araeng isn't too jarring.
> 
> Also, a warning that there is minor body horror during the scene in Amh Araeng. You know the one. I didn't try to describe anything in depth, so I hope that it isn't too bad.

**_TIME CALIBRATED. DISABLING LIGHT-FIELD TIME ESTIMATE._ **

**_BEGIN LOG O25-24:_ **

The Warrior was soft and warm.

After their moment, Omega had lowered Nino into bed, and was happy to note that she was sleeping far more soundly than before.

They also noted the Warrior’s tendency to cling to whatever she had in her arms whilst she slept. Previously it had been a pillow. Now it was a silver-skinned machine. They even noted with some satisfaction that when they attempted to move away, Nino clung onto them like a spider’s web. After a while, they settled on their side and the cool bed and warm Nino presented a pleasant dichotomy of sensations.

Omega figured that curled within the Warrior’s warm embrace was far from the worst place to spend the night, even if the Warrior’s snores  _ were  _ quite loud. 

_ It does become white noise after a while. Mayhap another boon of the Echo? _

**_If it is, I may have to question why she didn’t divert the energy to perhaps... healing?_ **

After night came day, although the light shining outside their window was impartial to the whole affair. Still, the Warrior’s internal clock stirred her from slumber. With a long sigh, she curled and relaxed before opening her eyes.

“Ah...” And then sharply inhaled as she realised what her arms were still wrapped around. “O-Omega?!” 

“Yes?” They had to admit Nino’s look of shock framed by sleep-mussed hair was highly amusing as she drew backwards onto her half of the bed. Again, the Warrior’s warmth seemed to cling to them, leaving an imprint on their skin.

“What... what are you doing?!” Her cheeks were stained pink. 

“Well, you fell unconscious after last night, and when I attempted to leave, you...  _ clung.” _

A shade not unlike her hair coloured her cheeks at that. 

If Omega were to describe it, they had just caused some sort of overflow error in Nino’s brain, what with the way any words she had died on the tip of her tongue.

“Ah, I’ll get out now. It was a very pleasant seven bells.” They added. Omega would have to explore Nino’s curious reaction later; it hardly seemed like a strange thing to share a bed. Space efficiency  _ and  _ comfortability, what was there  _ not _ to like?

“T-thank you.” Sudden words were forced out of the Warrior’s mouth, as if only those two words had made it past the roadblock of her blushing cheeks. 

“For?” Now that Nino’s bed-mate was missing the bed, responses came far more easily.

“Last night. You erm...” Her eyes were focused on the sheets. “I really needed that. Thanks.”

It was Omega’s turn to search for the words as an unexpected silence stretched for a moment too long. Nino’s gaze turned more amused than abashed as it went on.

_ Try ‘You’re welcome’. _

“Oh! You’re welcome.” They smiled, but quickly felt the distinct sensation of awkwardness creep in. Something like anxiety mixed in with pure dread, that one.

Nino was far more bemused than she had any right to be. “Alright!” She clapped her hands, the usual fire returning to her body. “Ready to go save the world?”

 

\--------------------

The wind rushing through her hair and ears did nothing to conceal the combination of worry and zeal that had filled the Warrior, who was clearly far more used to their method of travel than a machine who was reforged less than a week prior.

To Omega, there was something about flying malms above the ground on an amaro that was quite breath-(aether?)-taking. There was also something about being able to calculate with some precision the exact risk -and consequence- of falling to the ground from such a height that was also quite off-putting. Thankfully, the bird felt incredibly sturdy, and were quite soft to boot, although not so much so that Omega would begin completely letting go of the reins like the Warrior had done. 

Apparently, the rushing wind and feathery beast carrying them were only  _ minor  _ obstacles to filling out her botany journal, crafting intricate jewelry, and teaching Omega how to maintain their newly bought staff.

The staff had a short and not so storied tenure with Omega. During their meeting with the Exarch to discuss the next move, he had rightfully observed that the android had no means of self defense. To which Nino’s reply was to march Omega down to the market, compare the strength, durability, and other statistics of the staffs on sale, and then exchange what was apparently twenty thousand gil for a white oak staff in the span of around five minutes. Now, it was secured on their back as Nino demonstrated basic repairs and restorations that would be difficult enough to do _not_ on a winged creature hurtling through the air because ‘now is as good a time as any!’

While the techniques of repair were idly noted, they found it difficult to focus on the present. Malms upon malms of possibilities and stories opened themselves up before Omega. Much like the height, trying to decipher even where they  _ might _ end up left them dizzy. It was a whole new land and territory they were being led into by Nino, one where predictions would fail them.

After living a life governed by cold calculations and simulations, stepping into the warm fold of emotions was one of the most terrifying things they had ever done, especially when their choices could have very  _ real  _ consequences, far more real than the idealised simulations they had grown used to.

 

\-----------------------

Appearances were deceiving. What they imagined would be hot desert hell had just about frozen over.

The chill extended far beyond the icy wind into what felt like the sand itself. Loose particles felt almost sharp and more crystalline than they ought to be. While there was nothing to be heard, it felt as if the very earth was begging, screaming for them to leave.

They couldn’t place where, but the desert bite gnawed at far more than just their sensors. This place sapped far more than just body heat. 

            Buildings were half buried and worn in the sand. Whatever names had been bestowed by their architects had been washed away by time, leaving no title excepting ‘ruin’. They stood silently, hearing nothing aside from Nino’s brief conversation with their amaro tamer.

This was a city just about abandoned by most. The idleness of it all put them on edge.

Still, Nino’s flame wouldn’t be put out by a little chill. As they ventured into Mord Souq, her eyes were lined with far more wonder than Omega’s trepidation. 

The chill faded as they entered a bustling (for a desert) town. Here, the isolation that had been gnawing at them mellowed and made way for their lighter emotions. Nino helped too, forcing them to hold back laughter as she tried to hug ‘a cute little kobold!’

“Ahem, if your... introduction is complete... Master Ghen Gen, this is the friend of the Exarch I was telling you about.” Cassard, their guide, spoke with the lustre of a well polished opal. Even keeled yet strong, his voice was almost addictive to listen to.

If Cassard’s register was an opal, Ghen Gen’s was… not. “Very good, very good! Though friend or no, all are welcome in Mord Souq!” Mayhap a haphazard shard of granite would be an apt description. 

The well-toned man spoke again. “ ‘Souq’ is Mordish for ‘city’. As things stand, this souq boasts the largest and busiest marketplace in all of Amh Araeng.” he crossed his arms as he explained. “You’ll find ores from the mines here, of course, but all manner of other things too. Many of them rare.”

The Warrior lit up at that, leaning in ever so slightly.

“As I told you before, not many visit Amh Araeng by choice, but Mord Souq’s a different story. Merchants come from malms around to purchase the relics that the Mord dig up.”

Interesting. So even through what seemed to be the most dire of circumstances, they continued to trade. 

Ghen Gen’s voice rattled in addition. “Aye, that they do, for Mord do not dismiss the spoils of the earth. We clean them and polish them and reveal to the world their true colours!”

Nino looked excited. Her foot had begun tapping again.

“That is why they come here! Come from far away! Come with much money!” Rough hands rubbed themselves together. Omega idly cleaned their glasses in the hopes that focusing on something different might reduce how grating this little... animal was. It didn’t work.

“And so our souq is always busy, busy, busy! No such thing as a thing no one needs!”

Cassard let out a throaty chuckle. “You say that every time, Master Ghen Gen! Some sort of family motto, isn’t it?” He turned to face the two visitors. “Or perhaps a mord philosophy - for which we should all be very grateful.” His gaze was downturned as he added: “Would that everyone was so willing to take in refugees regardless of race or creed.”

That remark seemed directed at someone  _ other _ than Omega or the Warrior, Although  _ who _ they couldn’t guess.

“Now then - if you intend to spend any time here, you’ll want to gain the trust of the locals.” Cassard faced Ghen Gen and gestured for him(?) to continue. 

“The cracking of the coinpurse!” Their tail swished about like a metronome. “You buy one thing from the markets. Price can be low or high, just as long as you buy!”

Nino was already reaching into her bag as Cassard cleared his throat.

“...As the good Mord says. In fact, the Exarch sent a little something to cover this very expense.” Cassard held his hand out, revealing a pair of golden coins. “And voeburt gold, no less! The first I’ve held in years.” The entire souq went silent as if Cassard had shouted fire before the thundering of feet could be heard all around.

The gold was the ichor in the water for the mercantile hounds. Within moments, almost every merchant had made their way to the scent. Goods of all kinds were being thrusted upon them, any merchant begging for them to spend the gold at their shop.

They could hardly decipher what any one merchant was saying beyond the fact that they were each pleading their case to be the chosen cracker of their coinpurses. Pots, jars, and bulky rocks were waved around as the gaggle of hawkers continued to attempt to raise their own gravity. Omega found themselves reaching for their staff to ward off the barrage of pitches.

Thankfully, and they were surprised to attach that adverb to Ghen Gen’s shrill shout, the Mord cut through all of the rabble.  “Enough of that! Calm, I say! These ones must still journey through the barrens. Nothing bulky! Nothing heavy!” He interrupted another Mord raising a titanium pot. “No  _ pots!” _

Omega looked to Nino, who shrugged.

“Nothing better for the road than a full belly. Spend those pieces at Rhon Ron’s place, yes? Eat for six before you leave!” A distant Mord waved at Ghen Gen, prompting the rest of the merchants to begin dispersing. Several looked like a sad coeurl.

The Warrior’s stomach emitted some sort of rumbling noise, prompting a sheepish grin from Nino. “Well. Food  _ does _ sound nice right about now. Onward!” 

Cassard let out a hearty chuckle as the coins were passed on to Nino.

As they strolled to Rhon Ron’s (presumed) food shack, Omega was left with two questions. Did every mortal contain a beast within their stomach, and just what kind of food did the desert provide for its inhabitants?

\----------------

“Glazed wriggler! You’ll never want any other treat!” According to Rhon Ron,  _ exotic _ food. Not that Omega was sure what normal food entailed, but an almost pained look was on Nino’s face as she laboured over which of the four foods to choose. 

Hardly the look of someone choosing from pleasant choices. In fact, it was the look of someone deciding on the best place to get stabbed. “Omega, what do you think?” Instead of making the choice, she tossed the flaming-hot potato into the android’s hands.

Fortunately, metaphorical flames didn’t harm an android. “Considering the temperature... the everburning bounty seems a boon over the others.” 

Rhen Ren replied far too quickly. “Yes, put some spice in your step! You won’t feel cold this night... and probably not the next one either!”

A grimace was all Nino could muster before Rhen Ren supplied them with twenty sticks of the ‘Everburning Bounty’. Whether or not it lived up to its name was yet to be confirmed.

 

\---------------

 

If for whatever reason, Omega was unsure about their sensors being calibrated, the incinerator within their mouth and throat would provide a suitable response to the positive. Ten sticks had proven highly effective kindling and sustenance, although Omega would have found themselves more than sated after one.

Unfortunately, they had to note that performing strenuous calculations only added a mental workload on top of the endless fire within their mouth. Breathing only fanned the flames, and they were placed at the unenviable fork in the road of deciding between respiration and pain.

Nino wasn’t doing much better. Tears were beginning to prick the corner of her eyes as she forced down the last of her half. She was far paler than usual.

Omega wavered where they stood. Their body was wholeheartedly rejecting the unholy mass of fire and meat they had thrown into it. For a moment, they could feel the whole process beginning to reverse itself and shuddered where they stood.

“...Keeping the merchandise down, yes? No returns!” the Mord pulled the plates of food out of the possible splash zone.

At that moment, only some force of nature kept their insides inside.

 

\---------------

 

The next half a bell was a blur on account of most of their focus landing squarely on the continued possession of their lunch. They did their best to nod and not look too much like they were on the brink of an expulsion of untold proportions. During the fire-induced blur, Nino placed an impractical amount of boxes in their arms, directing them to haul alongside her. 

By the time the boxes met Cassard, the burn within them had begun to ease. Although they hadn’t truly come back complete awareness until a shout from a passerby roused them.

“...Cassard? It feels like an age since we last saw you!” A youngish voice cut through the air of the market. 

They turned towards the source: a short hume woman with light-bleached hair and tattered wear was waving. Her robe bore the scars of repair in several places, juxtaposing the relatively youthful face atop it.

Cassard replied, voice as smooth as ever. “Well if it isn’t the lovely Tesleen! It has been a while, but your timing couldn’t be better.” He gestured to the two newcomers. “These two women were on their way to meet with Alisaie. I’m supposed to be taking them to your corner of the desert, but a misplaced order has commandeered my attention...” He trailed off and left the implication hanging in the air. 

She took it in for a moment before her attention was hooked by Nino. “...Wait. I know who you are.” Nino reeled for a moment before Tesleen continued with a bright smile. “Alisaie has told me  _ so much _ about you! You’re Nino, aren’t you?” The woman compressed, waiting for the Warrior’s response.

“She has…?” Nino mumbled before nodding.

The spring was released, Tesleen clapped her hands together. “I  _ knew _ it! How wonderful to meet you in the flesh after hearing all those stories!” Nino cracked a grin. “I’m Tesleen. I work as a carer at the Inn, and I’ve gotten to know Alisaie quite well since she took up guard duties there.” 

_ It appears that Nino has a devoted fan among her comrades.  _

**_Well, her life is certainly fantastical enough..._ **

“Do you want me to take over as their guide, Cassard? My shopping’s all done and packed for the road, so it would be no trouble.” Their previous guide nodded and uttered a quick reply.

“That would be a great help, thank you!” He turned to the two batons that he was passing off. “Well, it looks like you’ll be able to head straight out after all. My caravan and I will be in the area for a while yet - seek me out when you’ve had your fill of Amh Araeng, and I’ll send you back to the Crystarium.” 

Tesleen nodded, before turning to Omega. “Oh! Alisaie never mentioned that the Warrior had a travelling companion.” Her eyes brimmed with interest “And a silver skinned woman, no less!”

Nino laughed. “They only started travelling with me after Alisaie landed here, just how much has she told you?” Her shite eating grin told Omega that she was gathering fodder to hit Alisaie with. The impending teasing would be an unmissable spectacle.

“Well, she called you a lone wolf, so it’s a little surprising that you’ve brought someone along!”

A poorly disguised laugh was hidden as a cough. “She  _ has,  _ has she? Oh, I cannot  _ wait _ to see her!”

“She’s been desperate to see you too, so let’s get you to her sooner rather than later!” Tesleen gestured towards the desert before realizing one last inquiry she wanted to make. “Oh, what’s  _ your _ name?” She looked to Omega.

“Oh. Omega.” Spending most of their time in the presence of people who already knew their name or didn’t bother asking had thrown them for a loop.

If the name was strange in this world, she didn’t show it. “Nice to meet you! It must be really safe with Nino around, huh?”

The Warrior scaring off a band of men sprung to their mind’s eye. “Of course.”

Satisfied, Tesleen outlined their route. “Right! We just need to swing around the ridge, then head south. Come on, I’ll get my supplies together and meet you outside!”

As the woman strode off, Nino let off some of her mirth. “Safe, hmm?”

“Your anger is something to behold. To be on your side is the only rational choice.” 

Cassard spoke with the wisdom of a man beyond his years. “Ah, Halone hath no fury like a woman scorned… You’d best be getting off before the light fades!” A wry smile lined his features.

\---------------

 

A few moments later, the bustle of the market had faded as they spoke with Tesleen outside the Souq. “All set? Oh, I should probably mention the wildlife. While most of them leave you be if you keep your distance, the local coyotes have learned to prey on folk heading home from the markets.” She hefted her boxes up in one motion.

Nino nodded, pulling a rapier and crystal from her pack.

“I can usually swing a sword well enough to fend them off, but I may have loaded myself down with too many bargains today...” She shifted the groceries in her hands. “Can you two handle any beasts that try to make a mess of us?”

The Warrior nodded again, glancing at Omega for confirmation. 

While they had the staff so graciously given to them, they hadn’t gone so far as to actually  _ use _ it. Still, several previous battle protocols were saved in their databases which would put them at least on par with an average user. They nodded in assent.

“Great! Alisaie was always talking about how much y- Um, I mean, let’s just get going, shall we?” Her face suitably red, Tesleen set out into the desert with her two defenders in tow.

Nino’s pace was almost relaxed, although her hands never strayed  _ too _ far from the weapon on her hip.

“What type of sword is that?” They asked while keeping a wide berth from the midges. 

“Oh, this is a rapier. It’s pretty good for getting up close and  _ shing shing!” _ The Warrior pantomimed her attacks with almost childlike glee. “Practical, too.”

“So you’re some sort of... assassin?” The rapier made sense, but the other crystal device didn’t. 

“Well, not  _ really.  _ I usually use this little thing to soften things up first,” Nino patted the red crystal on her hip. “ _ Bang, boom!  _ And then  _ shing shing!  _ They usually don’t last long after that.”

Any response was cut off by a nearby growl. A coyote had caught their scent, the almost comedic aura from the Warrior disappeared.

Omega almost pitied the animal. Mangly and thin, it was clear that most of the other prey in the desert either did a much better job of hiding or made the coyotes their prey instead.

“Oh, that’s our cue!” Nino drew her rapier and looked to Omega. “Can I count on you to heal me?” 

They started. “I haven’t exactly..” 

“That’s fine! You have the staff, and that’s half the battle!”

Half of the battle was the enemy, but that wasn’t about to stop them from drawing the staff. The wood felt right in their hand, well balanced and light.

“Just focus some extra aether into me, and it should be fine!” Nino added before rushing the coyote with rapier in hand, leaving Omega to chase after her. 

If Omega was poetic or had a better handle on their emotions, mayhap they could have described just how incredible it was to witness the Warrior begin casting spells at the coyote. As explained, she softened up the coyote by blasting it with thunder, fire, and then more thunder. There was something about how she wove spells together seamlessly that had Omega and Tesleen entranced. Her hands moved quickly, yet intricately in well practiced patterns. The wolf was about to face a storm and then some.

But for a moment, nature triumphed over man. The coyote defied the barrage of spells to take a bite out of Nino’s arm, who shrugged it off with a grunt. They shivered as the far-too calculable amount of diseases in the bite crossed their mind.

Half a second passed before they remembered the staff in their hand. While they only had usable destructive spells, shifting the balance away from highly concentrated damage and into spread out general aether would do the job.

As soon as the right balance was discovered, they made their move, waving the staff in the vague direction of Nino.

Unfortunately, the well intentioned spell missed its mark. For all the calculations they had just put into making the spell heal, they had forgotten to calculate trajectory.

At least the rapid stitching on the coyote proved that the spell  _ worked. _

“Oh for… hit me next time!” The Warrior shouted. She sounded amused and annoyed at the same time. 

After such a welcome turn of events, the Warrior eschewed the magic and applied the rapier directly to the jugular of the coyote.

The aether within the animal said ‘no thank you’ to that, and promptly handed in their resignation. Moments later and the beast was nothing more than a memory.

A memory far clearer for some than others. Especially in the red blood lightly staining Nino’s white robes. 

Needless to say, Omega was far from impressed. The error had been obvious, but they had  _ somehow _ missed it! For an android that had possibly the most powerful processor in the galaxy, that was  _ incredibly _ disappointing.

__ Goodness, they were beginning to think that the mortal condition was incredibly bleak, what with all of the anxiety and  _ regret.  _

The Warrior turned around to face the android, who had already begun to speak as they clumsily re-sent a cure spell to her. Thankfully, it worked just as well on humans as it did on animals.

“I apologize. I miscalculated the trajectory.” Their gaze found the ground as they slung their cane over their back. “It would appear that I am unfit to heal just yet.”

They weren’t entirely sure what they were expecting, but a soft hand on the shoulder was near the bottom of the list. They met the Warrior’s gaze and noted the warm smile she wore. 

“ Just hit me next time.” Her tone was soft.  “Your cure was pretty potent, and look...” 

She held up her arm. “The bite is gone. So don’t worry!” 

Well, at least they could calculate the aether percentages correctly. Not that it helped fill the pit within them at yet  _ another _ injury caused by them.

Tesleen, for her part, was suitably starstruck, choosing this moment to chime in as she caught up with the duo. “Sorry, there wasn’t much time to shout a warning. Were you bitten? Those things can be  _ nasty.”  _ Nino rubbed her arm with an exaggerated grimace. Now she was just teasing them.

“And yet hardly a match for you, it seems! I’d always thought Alisaie was strong, but in her mind, she was never...” Tesleen mumbled something else. “Now it makes sense...”

She caught herself with a cough. “Ahem! Well, we should push on! It might be for the best if you scout ahead and clear out any coyotes that have our scent.”  Tesleen smiled. “I’ll wait here so you can fight without any distractions!”

“Alright! But let’s keep it quick,” Nino stretched her arms, groaning as her cold muscles hadn’t been afforded the chance to completely warm up.

The Warrior dashed forward again, once again leaving Omega in the dust, thankful that she left no time to dwell on their mistake.

\----------------

 

The next battle proved far less challenging than the first, now that they had the aether balances all calculated, they could devote the proper effort to ensuring that they hit their target.

Not that healing was required.. Nino dispatched a trio of coyotes with a single flower shaped spell, paving the way for Tesleen.

“This is it!” The box-maiden stopped at the entrance to a large stone structure. Makeshift beds and torches were visible, and many of them appeared to do a barely fair job of keeping the occupants comfortable.

The shorter woman was peppier than one would expect. “Thanks to you, I didn’t have to drop my shopping even once! Come to think of it, I’m glad I didn’t make the trip alone.”

She laughed easily. “It seems that you ended up escorting  _ me!  _ I’ll have to repay that favour somehow. But first, let’s head inside, shall we?” Tesleen strolled into the almost-cavern with the ease of a baker walking into a bakery.

“Welcome to the Inn at Journey’s Head. You two might be the first visitors from the Crystarium since Alisaie arrived.”

Now that Alisaie was (presumably) within reach, the Warrior had transformed into gunpowder looking for a comrade shaped spark. As Tesleen spoke, Nino’s eyes were darting to and fro in search of her friend, but to no avail.

Not that her occupancy here would be a necessarily positive thing. Aside from the twirling aetheryte, the structure would be better named an  _ Inn- _ firmary. None of the guests checked in voluntarily, to say the least.

As if to mirror their observations, Tesleen spoke. “It’s not much, but it’s home to a handful of the afflicted and a handful of carers.”

Omega was about to ask for just  _ what _ afflicted them, but was stopped by Fer.

_ Oh dear. I’ve just looked at the aether readings of the patients. _

**_Yes?_ **

_ They’re not good. Light has suffused every single one of their beings. _

**_...It’s exactly like it was in Lakeland._ **

_ Yes. I hazard a guess that this imbalance is having similar consequences on the afflicted. The only point of contention being the manifestations... None of the projected outcomes prove to be pleasant imagery. _

Whilst Omega noted the awful reality of the Inn, Tesleen had joined Nino’s cause and had begun searching for Alisaie as well. 

“Oh. Hm... she must be out on patrol.” The caretaker thought for a moment as Nino deflated. “You could wait, I suppose... but why not go and surprise her?” 

Adjectives eluded the image of the Warrior perking up  _ incredibly _ quickly in reply. Was it amusing? That hardly seemed like the right word. It was far more warmth than mirth that filled them at the sight.

“She usually takes a look at things from the watchtower first, so you may be able to catch her there.”

The Warrior had already turned and left through the northern entrance before Tesleen could continue.

“Ah...” Her next sentence, presumably of where the landmark  _ was, _ ended up stuck in her throat.

Omega turned back towards the carer. “Where is this watchtower?”

“Oh, yes! It’s not far - head out the south side and you’ll soon see it. I’ll stay behind, to direct Nino or Alisaie in the case either of them return.”

\-------------

 

“Nino!” A red plume of hair was the only feature amidst the otherwise unremarkable dunes.

“I don’t see the watchtower!” She called as Omega caught up with her.

“It’s through the southern entrance.”

“But I left through that one!” 

“You left through the  _ northern _ entrance.” A moment passed as Nino took a measured breath. Then without another word, she turned on her heel and made for the opposite direction. 

The now double-distance that they had for travel afforded them the chance to clarify a few questions that had crossed their mind.

“You seem quite keen to move forward.” Nino threw a thunderbolt at a stray coyote before she replied, eyes still forward. Her tone was far more downbeat than Omega was used to.

“I just want to see Alisaie. She was taken at a pretty bad time.” Her rapier was sheathed as they jogged through the Inn and past a waving Tesleen. Out of the northern entrance, a searing wall of light crossed the horizon. Buildings and debris were hanging impossibly, stuck in the purgatory of the light.

“She was... we were pretty close, you know? Especially after everyone else...” The Warrior’s pace increased slightly as recollection flashed in her eyes.

“So you are concerned for her.” Omega observed.

“Oh, not concerned. Not at all.” A beat. Her tone was the least convincing version of the Warrior.  “Okay, I just really want to see her. She was taken during a  _ pretty  _ important battle - Gods, I’d love to have heard her cuss out the Exarch...” 

Ah, the lalafell had mentioned that last part. “During the ‘Ascian-Zenos mumbo jumbo’, as Tataru describes it?”

The Warrior nearly tripped at the mention. “Is that what she calls it?” She chuckled. “And she’s the record keeper...”

The watchtower quickly approached, muting the conversation as android and mortal cast their eyes about in search of Alisaie. Omega realised about ten seconds in that they had no idea what Alisaie looked like (aside from a mimed ahoge), but decided against interrupting the Warrior’s intense searching.

“...She’s not here.” Her tone was approaching frantic. “Where…?”

More hoping to stop Nino’s incoming anxiety than anything, they pointed out a possible lead. “There’s footprints in the sand here. Do they appear to be the right size?”

The Warrior’s racing train of worry was temporarily halted as she knelt down. “Huh? Oh, let me see... about a hand and an eighth... yeah. These are hers. Let’s go.” She drew her rapier and began to follow the footprints through a more populated area of the desert.

Omega nodded and followed her lead, loading a few offensive spells beside their curative ones. 

After the rocky start, duels initiated by the local fauna became as close to trivial as battles could get. Either Nino or Omega would send an offensive spell first, and then depending on what followed, Nino would race in to finish the kill, or Omega would launch another spell. Thankfully, as a pair of mandibles still managed to find android thigh once, magicks from Nino helped along their healing as well as Omega’s did hers.

Eventually, the tracks terminated in a flurry of steps, and disappeared. There was still no sign of Alisaie. They both put their weapons away as they looked around.

“Ugh… What now?” Nino started pacing. “Where…? Oh.” A white beast came into view, lazily flapping its wings. 

Before either of them could react, a blur leapt from atop the ruins. Nino gasped.

In the blink of an eye - if the blink of an eye took approximately 5 seconds - the white haired figure dispatched the eater before staff or rapier left their sheathes. The Warrior was careful to wait until the beast faded before sprinting towards the newcomer. Her brown coat flapped in the wind, and a rapier not dissimilar from the Nino’s was in her hand. They could see a white ponytail flapping in the breeze as the Warrior approached, excitement building with every step. 

“Impressive!” Nino stopped just short of bowling her over. A breeze had come in, almost as if to herald this reunion.

“Just a lesser sin eater, nothing to write home about.” The woman hadn’t turned around, but they could hear several emotions thick in her voice as she took a breath. “I knew you’d turn up sooner or later, but I was hoping for  _ sooner.” _

Another pause. She turned around, unaware of the incoming projectile.

“How are y-oomf!” The Warrior had her in a crushing hug, lifting the shorter woman right off her feet. Red hair met white as the Warrior breathed in the presence of a friend long lost, spinning her around multiple times and letting out a drawn out cheer.

Alisaie let herself be embraced, trying and failing to appear as if she wasn’t enjoying her first contact with the Warrior after a year apart. No matter how hard she tried to school her expression to one of ease, a wide grin still persisted as if she was earning gil every moment it remained.

It was stirring to see the Warrior so happy. After days of seeing her in various states of hidden distress, seeing her finally  _ joyful _ gave them a wonderful warm feeling.

“I see that you haven’t stopped giving your coeurl hugs.” Alisaie said once the Warrior put her back down on the ground.

“I missed you!” Nino looked pouty, puffing out her cheeks in response.

Alisaie only chuckled in response before noticing the Warrior’s new companion. The smile turned into a thin line rather quickly. 

“Who’s that?” Her voice turned suspicious as she regarded the silver skinned robot with a glare.

The Warrior replied easily. “Oh, it’s Omega. Big robot weapon, you know the one.” 

“The one who tried to kill you multiple times.” Alisaie was equal parts dumbfounded and annoyed. 

The Warrior nodded.

“And  _ repeatedly  _ hurt Cid and his team.” Hearing their previous transgressions laid out was far more biting than the cold.

“That’s the one!” 

Alisaie had gone from equal parts to complete annoyance. “So why exactly is she your companion now?” 

Omega chose this moment to enter the conversation, speaking clearly and evenly.

“Cid and his team were gracious enough to repair me after our final encounter in the rift. However, that process also involved the introduction of emotions into my function.” 

Alisaie looked nonplussed. “So you have feelings now.”

“Exactly.”

She turned to Nino, who looked almost sheepish. “You have  _ so much _ explaining to do.”

\------------------

 

“How do you know that she actually has emotions?” The question came easily from Alisaie’s mouth, although a response came far less easily from the Warrior, who had just finished retelling the events of the last few days. They had wandered near a grouping of gravestones whilst they spoke.

“Er...” 

“And those are  _ your _ glasses. Why… why does she need glasses?” Her hands were on her hips.

“As Nino said, Wedge was improving the emotional output of a mammet heart, and my existing systems took them in without any conflict. As for the validity of the emotions...” They shook their head. “I wouldn’t know how to confirm their validity.”

“What do you mean? You’re pretty good at running  _ tests.”  _ Alisaie’s voice had a sharp edge to it along with another fiery glare that forced them to avert their eyes.

The Warrior returned a look of her own. “There’s no need to bring it up, Ali. They’re already pretty broken up about it.” With a voice just as steely.

“And how do you know? They could be waiting for a moment to hu-”

“Please. I would rather not hear about my previous life.” Their gaze was still focused on a nearby gravestone and their internal systems were beginning to speed up. They focused on the stone fragments and worn words of a life long extinguished. It wasn’t helping.

“Hmph.” Alisaie relented, if only to please the Warrior, although her suspicion had hardly faded. “If you try  _ anything...” _

“Believe me when I say that I am struck with  _ immense  _ regret every time I am reminded of that time. Is that enough for you?” They could barely keep their voice straight.

“...Fine.” A small mercy that she hadn’t gone any further.

A moment passed before they gathered the courage to face the white-haired woman. She still regarded them with the suspicion one reserved for basilisk oil salesmen, but the fire in her eyes had eased almost imperceptibly. 

They noted the key adjectives that stuck out to them. 

**_Alisaie: Blunt, straightforward, merciless._ **

\------------------

 

Further conversation between Alisaie and the Warrior had revealed something they had suspected, yet had hoped was not the case. The origins of the sin eaters had been from a deadly imbalance of light aspected aether within a living creature.

It didn’t take an android to notice that every patient in the Inn was afflicted with that  _ exact  _ malady. Within bells, days, or moons, they would turn into insatiable creatures ready to gorge themselves on any living aether nearby and spread the light like a disease.

They had time to think upon this grim reality as they assisted Tesleen and the other caretakers around the Inn, feeling the creeping curiosity of whether or not they were truly helping. 

What they were doing was using a pebble to stop the tide of a river. Small comforts hardly mattered in the end. After all, the only effective intervention was to spare victims the pain of turning by means of poison. 

Euthanasia was the  _ better _ option, and that hardly sat well with them at all. Even if it was completely logical, it hardly felt  _ good _ ending a life that by all accounts had no say in their affliction.

There were no calculations that they could run to make themselves feel better about what they were participating in, only some rotten tangerines of rationalization.

This dilemma had their thoughts firmly within its jaws as they waited for Alisaie and the Warrior to return to the inn. She had requested a private conversation with Nino atop a nearby tower.

That left Omega with nothing to do but wait and bear witness to the quiet death of several mortals, old and young. To sit and observe malms of tapestries being cut short by the sharp blade of light. If they had learned anything from Nino, any particular mortal had histories and lives so rich and detailed that they could likely fill their entire database with stories and still be wanting for space. 

And to see all of them reach the end of their tale here, in a cold desert surrounded with naught but pain and sand…

They could search their entire dictionaries several times over and not find a suitable word to describe the ceaseless sadness of it all. 

Everyone residing in the Inn could see their impending doom laid out before them, but could do nothing but lay in wait for the moment that the light took them, much like the buildings ensnared in the wall of white.

The internal flume of thoughts continued even after the two elezens returned, even as Tesleen served them food and began talking about her own story of her mother’s affliction.

They were only jolted back to reality when one of the caretakers interrupted their meal with an alarm. Halric had gone missing.

“I swear, I only took my eyes off of him for a moment!” her voice was shaking. 

Every single one of them stood up, all confused for a split second before realizing the meaning of her words. Tesleen was the first to act.

“We have to go find Halric!” She looked around desperately for any further assistance, but found no caretakers that would be of much help. “I don’t know what’s gotten into him, but if he’s heading out alone...” Omega began calculating the possible distances and areas. 

In the space of those few breaths, Nino and Alisaie had begun similar estimations. “We’ll assign search areas and split up. Any idea where he might be headed?” The shorter of the two asked.

“No, he’s never done anything like this before. But it can’t be a coincidence that the other patients are suddenly so agitated...” Tesleen breathed, reeling her panicking mind in. “Let’s keep the search close to the inn. Halric isn’t very sure on his feet, so he won’t have gone far. I’ll go search the east side.” She took off, breathing a silent prayer for Halric as she left.

Any animosity from Alisaie had been shoved aside in the face of the disappearance. “I’ll take the north. You and Omega can decide how to split west and south.” Her rapier was drawn as she jogged off.

“I’ll take west. You take south?” Nino had her hand on a giant claymore as Omega nodded. “Good. Give us a shout if you see him.”

They both ran in their respective directions, eyes cast upon the landscape in search of Halric.

 

\--------------------

Well, having the old destructive spells ended up being useful. A few stray sin eaters had come across Omega during their search, but even at reduced potency a few blasts of aether took care of them without too much disruption.

They had searched most of the south quadrant before circling back towards the west, coming upon Alisaie and Nino. 

“Any sign of him?” Alisaie asked, slightly breathless.

“No. I searched well beyond the area he could have reached as well.” Omega answered. 

“Nothing here, either. Where could he be…?” 

Alisaie sighed, frustrated with the lack of development. “We should keep looking. The sin eaters are out in full force, and if we don’t find him soon, you can be sure they will.”

The trio’s attention was drawn by a giant sin eater flying across the white sky. One could be forgiven for mistaking it for an angel, what with the wings and almost youthful visage. Though the pristine white sword it was carrying gave it the impression of a spirit sent from the heavens to strike down all of the lowly mortal sinners.

“Did you see the size of that thing? Must be one of the nasty ones.” Alisaie tracked the white beast with hunter’s eyes. “Wherever it’s going, it can only mean trouble. After it!”

It didn’t take much running to come across a scene that was as shocking as it was concerning. Halric looked up, almost as if greeting the sin eater. There were no words exchanged aside from a cold stare. It went unbroken even as the monster raised its sword.

They focused on redistributing their aether towards their combat subsystems as they rushed towards the white beast alongside Nino and Alisaie. Their focus turned needle-thin as they attempted to devise a strategy. 

“Hyah!” A shout rang through the air, stopping Nino and Alisaie. Omega continued racing towards Halric, only  _ just _ noting the fallen wing and Tesleen. 

She gently cupped Halric’s face. “You have to run!” Tesleen shouted, relieved only for a moment before the sin eater swung again.

Omega fired, but was far too late to prevent the sword etching itself through Tesleen’s chest, deep enough that it pricked Halric’s cheek with the still-white tip. 

It nearly stopped them dead in their tracks. Shock and horror almost crushed them as they took in the outright  _ terrifying _ scene laid out before them. 

The beast was not deterred by a single shot, and almost seemed to be contemplating pushing the sword even deeper. Tesleen still spoke to Halric, although her voice was far too low to comprehend her words.

Something deep inside them spurned them forward, forcing one foot in front of the other, guiding another blast of aether that forced the sin eater away. Now unsupported by nothing but her failing legs, Tesleen fell to the ground burdened by nothing but the gaping hole in her chest. Omega went to their knees as they tried to begin aiding her, almost frozen by the satin-white appearance of the wound.

For only a split second, they had no idea what to do. Within moments, the light aether would overtake the woman, and there was no time to simulat-

_ Stop with the bloody calculations and  _ **_DO_ ** _ something! _

Fer shocked them into action. Pushing their train of thought forward from where it had stalled. 

The wound they could heal. It was the suffusion of light aether that would kill her far sooner. 

Now how would they get the light out? Channeling it out was an option, but the only suitable target would be,.. They balked as they realized.

All of it would have to be channeled directly into their body. Not only would the amount of light prove damaging, there was a good chance they would have to shut down for some amount of time if they went forward. Still it was the  _ only _ option.

Mayhap if there had been a few more moments, but alas. Precious grains of sand in Tesleen’s hourglass were falling away, and any extra time spent overanalyzing would result in a stratagem that would have to be applied to a sin eater.

Omega reached out and grabbed the ravaging light within Tesleen. It coiled and shrieked in their grasp, splaying itself out and grabbing on tight to the soul it was attempting to commandeer. This was a  _ massive _ amount, and they almost lost their hold of the aether.

_ You take in the light. I’ll manage whatever... side effects happen. _

**_But…_ **

_ What? Are you going to let her become one of the sin eaters? _

Fer made a good point. 

Tesleen began to cough up a pure white liquid. Within moments, her destiny would be sealed..

So many  _ feelings _ were rolling inside them. They weren’t entirely sure if it was fear or determination that pushed their hand forward once more. All that they knew was that they grabbed with all their inhuman strength and started pulling the unwilling light into them, tearing it from Tesleen like hide from beast. The moment the aether latched onto them, red-hot pain seared through them. Aetheric imbalances were not to be trifled with. Yet in spite of the burning, something kept their hand outstretched.

Several warnings began appearing and their vision started to wash out, but there was no point in doing this by half measures.

They heard vague shouts as they continued dragging the plague-like aether into themselves. Power was channeled away from anything that wasn’t absolutely necessary to this moment. Their hand began to shake as the pain intensified. Tesleen writhed and moaned as her skin turned unnaturally pale.

_ Keep on going!  _

A memory of attacking Nino flashed before their eyes as they felt their touch sensors go offline, leaving naught but the light and pain. Seconds more and they would be forced to let go, utterly depleted.

_ Her aether levels are almost normal, just a little bit more… _

Another memory of Nino hugging them, laughing and smiling crossed their mind. They had told themselves that they would... 

Their grip tightened, grabbing almost blindly at the last remaining bit of light they could and absorbing it as everything gave out. 

They hit the ground with what they presumed was a thud. The only sense they had left was their barely functioning eyes. Even the pain had faded to a dull ache. By some stroke of luck, their glasses had remained on.

**_How is…_ **

_ Her aether’s good enough. Back within ‘safe’ levels. Although some light still remains within her, it should be negligible enough for her to naturally tip back to equilibrium. _

**_What about us?_ **

_ It would be far easier to tell you what  _ isn’t _ in dire need of repair, mostly due to the light clogging all of the channels.  _

**_Possibility of repair?_ **

_ High, although we would have to focus all our self-repair protocols away from our corrupted data banks and towards our body. _

**_...That’s fine._ **

If they could move, mayhap a smile would have graced their face as Nino and Alisaie finally,  _ finally  _ arrived, both utterly bewildered by what lay before them. 

The bewilderment didn’t last for long. After all, Tesleen still had a hole in her chest that would render Omega’s heroics useless if it wasn’t tended to immediately. Thankfully, the Warrior swapped her claymore for her staff almost immediately to begin aiding the fallen caretaker. All Alisaie could do was watch in a mixture of pain and worry as Nino began casting one of her spells of last resort.

From the relief that exploded across Alisaie’s face, the spell had worked. Tesleen would survive, although with whatever side effects accompanied being pulled away from death’s door.

To Omega, It felt as if they had taken the first step towards making up for their past transgressions. They had  _ finally _ helped rather than hurt. Pure satisfaction coursed through them with what little power remained.

However, in the following moments, that feeling would vanish without a trace. 

As with anything, fates could be changed by the tiniest of margins. Whether it be a Warrior taking pity on a damaged android, or an aristocrat choosing a less potent poison, destinies often laid upon the tip of a sword.

To attempt to shift the balance of fate was folly. The gods would give as often as they took, and the price demanded for a life saved was hefty indeed. 

With someone as deeply poisoned as Halric, even the smallest bit of light could shift the precarious balance with catastrophic consequences. 

Even the tip of a sword laced with light could act as a catalyst.

Sight quickly went from a blessing to a curse in a matter of seconds as they bore witness to the horrific transformation. Joints snapped, light, almost liquid, poured out and encased his small frame. 

Would it be that they could avert their eyes, move, do  _ anything. _ But naught remained but the pure feeling of horror and disgust.

The worst part was not the way the wings sprouted, or the slow morph of skin to leather. No, it was the perpetually still face of the child, neutral until the last moment until a look of pure agony, horror, and dread etched its way onto his features and into the memories of the bystanders.

Omega didn’t know if Nino or Alisaie screamed, but the shorter one fell to her knees. All that Nino could do was stand transfixed and watch as the beast that was Halric regard them for a moment before flying away, misshapen wings easily carrying the small frame.

_ Running low on juice. I’ll shift into low power. _

Fer barely registered above the torrent of thoughts in their head. Too many to count, like stars upon a bloody sky. 

The final vision upon their still eyes was Nino staring into the distance, her body faintly shaking as the desert continued its still march around them.

 

**_END LOG O25-24._ **

**_LOG O25-24 RENAMED: ‘THE SLEEPING SANDS’._ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading this chapter. I hope that it was as enjoyable as it could be, and I would appreciate critique or comments.
> 
> -MoF10


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